GLENDALE, Ariz. — As Ole Miss standout running back Kewan Lacy made his way to the locker room following the Rebels’ 31-27 loss to Miami in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, former Hurricanes and Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis stopped him and pulled him aside.
Lacy was hurting in every way following the end to the Rebels’ chaotic season. He was still wearing a black brace on his arm to restrict his movement from an old injury, and a black bandage on his right hamstring, which he injured Thursday night during an electric 73-yard touchdown run to start the second quarter.
With his lips pressed together tightly in disappointment and frustration, he looked Lewis directly in the eyes without speaking. He listened as one of Miami’s most decorated defenders told him he learned more from his losses than his wins.
“Sometimes the battles sharpen you so that you can deal with them,” Lewis said. “These kids, their hearts are broken. I grabbed him because I’m a fan of Lacy. I think he’s dynamic. I watched him from the middle of the season all the way through it. But when you get to this point, you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, my life has ended.’ No, it’s just beginning. Now you got to learn something. Pick your teammates up.”
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The Rebels have been forced to pick each other up since their former coach, Lane Kiffin, left for LSU on Nov. 30. But they never quit — certainly not against Tulane in the first round, not in a 39-34 win against No. 3 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl quarterfinal and not in the fourth quarter against Miami. Following what was a thrilling matchup that included six lead changes and came down to the final play, those within the Ole Miss program agreed that the adversity they faced on and off the field brought them closer, enabling them to make history in spite of it. The Rebels finished with a school-record 13 wins and their first playoff appearance in program history.
“They’re going to be talking about this for a long time, right?” said coach Pete Golding, who was promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach following Kiffin’s departure. “Some of it is going to be ‘what could have happened’ and all those things, but they’ve made memories in this year in that locker room that will last a lifetime.”
Ole Miss receiver Cayden Lee said that a few days after Kiffin left, about eight players on the team’s leadership council called a players-only meeting.
“The message was, at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter who’s calling the plays,” said Lee, who was one of the players who led the meeting. “We’re the players, we need to go out there and execute, and that’s stuff we’ve been able to do up until tonight, unfortunately.”
The biggest daggers were on third downs, where Ole Miss finished with zero yards on 10 plays. Miami controlled the clock, eating up 41:22 in time of possession, the most in a game in CFP history. The Rebels won the turnover battle, though, and were helped by 10 Miami penalties for 74 yards. The six lead changes were the most in CFP history — and four came in the wild fourth quarter. The Rebels’ inability to sustain drives and convert on third downs was the difference.
So was Miami quarterback Carson Beck, who finished with 268 passing yards and three touchdowns — including the game winner on a 3-yard scramble with 18 seconds remaining.
Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, a remarkable story of a Division II player from Ferris State who was one play away from the national championship game, finally ran out of magic. He completed two passes to get the Rebels to the Miami 35-yard line with six seconds left, but his final, desperate heave fell incomplete as time expired.
He wasn’t defeated, though.
“You can do whatever, and you can achieve things that you wouldn’t even think that you could achieve. And this year has taught me that,” Chambliss said. “And I’ve just learned a lot. I created a lot of good relationships and connections throughout the season, and I’m truly grateful for that.”
Senior right tackle Jayden Williams said the Rebels never worried about things “going off the rails” after Kiffin left “because we knew were built for it.”
“They hired PG, PG took over, and honestly, if I had a sixth year, I’d come back and play for PG because there’s not a man I’d rather play for than him,” Williams said.
Clearly others in the program feel the same, as they’ve reaffirmed their commitments to him. Lacy, an All-America running back whose 24 rushing touchdowns are the third-most in a season in SEC history, signed a deal to return next season. Chambliss, along with seven other players, announced Monday he planned to return pending the approval of an NCAA waiver for an additional year of eligibility.
“It’s a bunch of players coming back,” Williams said. “They’re bringing a bunch of players in. You’ve seen them already in the portal. They’re gonna be reloaded, and if they’re in the natty next year, I wouldn’t ever be surprised.”
