It’s been a rough 24 hours for Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, but the biggest blow didn’t come in the Fiesta Bowl.
The NCAA has denied Chambliss’ waiver for another year of eligibility. That means the Rebels’ 31-27 loss to Miami in the College Football Playoff semifinal was his final collegiate, barring a successful appeal or lawsuit.
From the NCAA, “In November, Ole Miss filed a waiver request for football student-athlete Trinidad Chambliss, seeking to extend his five-year Division I eligibility clock, citing an incapacitating illness or injury. Approval requires schools to submit medical documentation provided by a treating physician at the time of a student’s incapacitating injury or illness, which was not provided. The documents provided by Ole Miss and the student’s prior school include a physician’s note from a December 2022 visit, which stated the student-athlete was “doing very well” since he was seen in August 2022. Additionally, the student-athlete’s prior school indicated it had no documentation on medical treatment, injury reports or medical conditions involving the student-athlete during that time frame and cited “developmental needs and our team’s competitive circumstances” as its reason the student-athlete did not play in the 2022-23 season. The waiver request was denied.”
NCAA statement on Trinidad Chambliss:
In November, Ole Miss filed a waiver request for football student-athlete Trinidad Chambliss, seeking to extend his five-year Division I eligibility clock, citing an incapacitating illness or injury. Approval requires schools to submit…
— NCAA News (@NCAA_PR) January 9, 2026
Chambliss attorney responds
Attorney Tom Mars, who is representing Chambliss on this case, also issued a statement.
“I’m disappointed, but not surprised. The last time I checked, however, the only score that matters is the one at the end of the fourth quarter,” Mars said in a statement to Yahoo! Sports’ Ross Dellenger. “I assume that Ole Miss will file an appeal with the NCAA, but that’s their decision to make. However, there now an opportunity to move this case to a level playing field where Trinidad’s rights will be determined by the Mississippi judiciary instead of some bureaucrats in Indianapolis who couldn’t care less about the law or the right thing. Whether to purse that course of action is a decision only Trinidad and his parents can make.”
Statement from Tom Mars. Legal action appears imminent. https://t.co/kS2hdxvrfT pic.twitter.com/UDMtZf4gFw
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) January 9, 2026
What to make of this?
Two instant takeaways:
There’s a high likelihood legal action is filed, so this denial isn’t the end of the story. It could be if Chambliss decides not to fight the NCAA and go to the NFL.
Ole Miss needs to start working to secure whatever Plan B option it has for quarterback next season. It’s been widely reported by On3 that Ole Miss is favored to land Duece Knight, the former Auburn quarterback. The Rebels might be expected to sign a second quarterback out of the portal, too.
More in the NCAA’s statement:
“This decision aligns with consistent application of NCAA rules. So far this academic year, the NCAA has received 784 clock extension requests (438 in football). Of those, 25 cases cited an incapacitating injury (nine in football). The NCAA approved 15 of those (six in football), and all 15 provided medical documentation from the time of the injury. Conversely, all 10 that were denied (three in football) did not provide the required medical documentation.
“To receive a clock extension, a student-athlete must have been denied two seasons of competition for reasons beyond the student’s or school’s control, and a “redshirt” year can be used only once. One of the rules being cited publicly (Bylaw 12.6.4.2.2) is not the correct rule for the type of waiver requested by the school. Ole Miss applied for the waiver in November, and the NCAA first provided a verbal denial Dec. 8.”
