The start of the 2026 Ole Miss football season is five months aways, but oddsmakers are already liking what they see from the Rebels.
Ole Miss is an 8.5-point favorite against Louisville in the inaugural Music City Kickoff game in Nashville. It’s no mystery why the Rebels are favored already when college football analysts are calling Ole Miss “one of the more fascinating programs.”
That came from Greg McElroy speaking on Always College Football and spoke highly of Pete Golding, Trinidad Chambliss, Kewan Lacy and others.
“I’m not exaggerating when I say that Ole Miss Football is one of the more fascinating programs,” McElroy said.
And he’s not wrong. Chambliss took Ole Miss to the College Football Playoff last season and had the Rebels within a single play of the national title game. That run ended with a No. 3 finish in the AP Poll and a sense that the program had finally broken through the ceiling it had been pushing against for years.
Then came the transition everyone is familiar with. Lane Kiffin left for LSU, Pete Golding slid into the head coaching role, and instead of wobbling, Ole Miss steadied itself. The Rebels went 2‑1 in the CFP and now Golding gets a full offseason to put his stamp on the program. It’s no surprise McElroy sees momentum building.
“This is exciting, right? It’s a very exciting time for Ole Miss football,” McElroy added.
A big part of that excitement is the return of Chambliss. His eligibility saga turned into one of the wildest offseason stories in the country, ending with the Mississippi Supreme Court denying the NCAA’s appeal on the same day Ole Miss opened spring practice. Suddenly, the Rebels had their quarterback back.
“To find out you’re eligible on the same day that you walk out on the practice field for the first time? If that’s not a sign, I don’t know what it is,” McElroy pointed out. “We know Chambliss is going to be a dude. He’s going to be a Heisman contender.”
Ole Miss opens with Louisville in Nashville, then turns around and faces LSU in a matchup loaded with storylines — Golding vs. Kiffin, Chambliss vs. Sam Leavitt, and all the emotions that come with it.
“That game’s going to be maybe the most emotionally charged regular season game in college football this year,” McElroy predicted.
If the early buzz is any indication, Ole Miss isn’t just fascinating. They look like a team ready to prove last year wasn’t a one‑off. They look like a team that expects to be in the conversation again.
