For a while Saturday, Ole Miss looked like it might have to deal with a Halloween scare from Auburn.
The Tigers weren’t going away, and a two-point game midway through the third quarter was too close for comfort. But then the Rebels finally took control, turning a 17-15 lead into a 45-15 victory at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
It wasn’t a perfect performance, and there will be plenty for Pete Golding and his staff to address before next week’s showdown with No. 3 Georgia.
But there were also quite a few encouraging developments. Here are three things that went right for Ole Miss against Auburn.
Trinidad Chambliss’ second-half performance
Golding spent part of the past week talking about how Chambliss needed to recognize when it was time to stop looking for an open receiver and start using his legs.
It appears the message got through. It just took until halftime.
Chambliss completed 9 of 15 passes for 100 yards and an interception in the first half. More notably, he had exactly zero rushing yards on one attempt.
That changed dramatically after halftime.
Chambliss completed 13 of 19 passes for 163 yards and two touchdowns in the second half. He also rushed six times for 65 yards and another touchdown.
His biggest play came when Ole Miss needed it most.
After Auburn cut the Rebels’ lead to 17-15, Chambliss led a 75-yard touchdown drive that included a 13-yard scramble on third-and-11 and ended with his 26-yard touchdown run on third-and-1.
He later connected with Caleb Cunningham and Horatio Fields for fourth-quarter touchdowns.
New angle just dropped @calebcunning3 pic.twitter.com/a0BGIgzUfo
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 31, 2026
Altogether, Chambliss accounted for 228 yards of offense and three touchdowns after halftime.
That’s the kind of production Ole Miss will need from its quarterback against Georgia.
Defensive havoc
There will be some legitimate complaints about the Ole Miss defense, particularly its inability to get off the field on third down.
But the Rebels also did plenty of things well, especially when it came to creating negative plays.
Ole Miss finished with four sacks, 10 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles, recovering both.
Suntarine Perkins and Tah’j Butler were responsible for all four sacks, each recording two. Butler also had seven tackles, while Perkins added five tackles and two quarterback hurries.
DOWN HE GOES ‼️@Tbut1er1 x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/RVs6tZxH6j
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 31, 2026
Keaton Thomas made one of the game’s biggest defensive plays in the second quarter.
After Chambliss threw an interception that gave Auburn the ball at the Ole Miss 31, the Tigers moved to the 16 on a pass interference penalty. Thomas then forced a Byrum Brown fumble, which Jamarious Brown recovered.
Ole Miss responded with an 86-yard touchdown drive to take a 14-6 lead.
The pass rush also came through in the fourth quarter.
Butler and Perkins each recorded a third-down sack, helping Ole Miss put an end to Auburn’s hopes of a comeback.
And while Brown was difficult to contain at times, Auburn finished with only 63 net rushing yards.
The defense wasn’t perfect, but its ability to create havoc made a difference.
Third-down offense
Want to know one of the biggest reasons Ole Miss was able to pull away?
The Rebels were almost impossible to get off the field.
Ole Miss converted 13 of its 16 third-down opportunities, an impressive 81.3% success rate. That included converting nine of 11 attempts in the second half.
Those weren’t all short-yardage situations, either.
Chambliss’ 13-yard scramble on third-and-11 helped set up his touchdown run, which came on another third down.
WHO YOU GONNA CALL ☎️@TrinidadChambl1 x #HottyToddy pic.twitter.com/cJm9flKPqB
— Ole Miss Football (@OleMissFB) October 31, 2026
Later, facing third-and-12 in the fourth quarter, Chambliss connected with Luke Hasz for 19 yards to keep alive the drive that ended with Deuce Knight’s touchdown run.
The Rebels finished with 30 first downs and 487 yards of total offense. They also scored touchdowns on four consecutive possessions after Auburn pulled within two points.
It wasn’t always pretty, but Ole Miss consistently found ways to extend drives.
And in a game that was uncomfortably close for much of the afternoon, that ability eventually wore Auburn down.
