If there’s one thing college football never runs out of, it’s panic.
Ole Miss fans had a full buffet of it on Sunday night. High snaps. Coverage busts. Injuries. A first half that looked like it just started practicing together.
And then the Rebels beat Louisville.
Not cleanly and not in a way that will calm anyone down. But they won, and they did it in a game that felt like three seasons crammed into four quarters.
So, before everyone spends the week arguing about what’s broken, let’s take a breath and look at what actually went wrong. There was plenty. Some of it fixable. Some of it concerning. All of it very fitting for a season-opening game.
What went wrong?
Defensive secondary coverage
If you clicked on this article, you already knew this was going to be included, so let’s get it out of the way.
The Rebels secondary was bad.
Did it have some good moments? Sure. Jaylon Braxton almost had an interception in the first half, and there were a few snaps where Lincoln Kienholz threw incompletions because every receiver was covered.
But the simple fact is the secondary almost lost the game for Ole Miss. The Cardinals’ offense scored the game-winning touchdown on a drive that stated with 3:09 left to play and didn’t even last two minutes. That was without any timeouts, too, and took only seven plays.
THE EFFORT FROM LOUISVILLE ON FULL DISPLAY 😤
Lawayne McCoy had Ole Miss on skates 😯 pic.twitter.com/1Wi4iEnMGB
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) September 7, 2026
Both second‑half touchdowns that kept Louisville in the game came on coverage busts. Missed tackles didn’t help, and it wasn’t limited to the second half.
You could argue the secondary would have cost the Rebels the game if Kienholz didn’t overthrow a wide‑open receiver with no defender within 10 yards.
LOUISVILLE AND OLE MISS IN A SHOOTOUT 🔥 pic.twitter.com/xxsLxUQrTo
— College Football Report (@CFBReport) September 7, 2026
Tre Richardson’s 30-yard touchdown run fooled all but one defender, and that tackle was missed. The misdirection was so good that safety Anthony Robinson III didn’t know Richardson had the ball until he was running past him.
.@Trerich20 with the first Cards TD of the season 🔥
Watch on ABC#GoCards pic.twitter.com/XD1Q5M3uUN
— Louisville Football (@LouisvilleFB) September 7, 2026
It’s early in the season, and there’s time to fix these mistakes. If not, it’ll be a long year with LSU and Texas on the schedule.
Just cramps? Or something more serious?
Opening weekend always brings leg cramps. It’s hot, players are exerting a ton of energy, and even people standing on the sideline break out in a sweat.
We know Kewan Lacy missed the entire second half with something other than cramps. But was that what sent Deuce Alexander and Kam Franklin to the locker room? And what about right tackle Tommy Kinsler, left guard Delano Townsend and linebacker Keaton Thomas?
The Ole Miss injury list is long for an opening game with injuries and cramps.
-LB Keaton Thomas
-OL Tommy Kinsler
-RB Kewan Lacy
-WR Deuce Alexander
-DB Antonio Kite— Brad Logan (@BradLoganTOC) September 7, 2026
That’s a lot of talented players missing time in a close game.
Ole Miss should be hoping none of those injuries are major. With Charlotte coming to Oxford next week, there’s at least a chance to rest and recover.
Shaky offensive line play
Statistically, the offensive line had a good night.
Zero sacks, 152 rushing yards and nearly 500 yards of total offense usually point to a strong performance.
But the main reason there weren’t any sacks was Chambliss’ elite scrambling ability. As the game wore on, he had to run away from pass rushers who encountered little resistance.
There were also three penalties for 35 yards (two holding, one face mask), a series of high snaps in the first quarter including one that killed the opening drive, and 3.7 yards per run isn’t going to set any records.
Still, Ole Miss got the win, and sometimes that’s all that matters. Brycen Sanders fixed whatever caused the high snaps, and three penalties aren’t catastrophic. The injury to Tommy Kinsler is concerning, and his replacement, Connor Howes (not Carius Curne, which was interesting) wasn’t as effective at slowing down the pass rush.
