Ole Miss is all but officially in the College Football Playoff. The Rebels could even host a first-round game. Will Lane Kiffin be coaching the team in the postseason?
That question continues to linger for however many more hours or days as the No. 7 Rebels beat rival Mississippi State 38-19 on Friday to finish the regular season at 11-1. Given Ole Miss’ current spot in the College Football Playoff rankings, the Rebels are on track to host a game on either Dec. 19 or 20. But the location of that game could ultimately depend on Kiffin’s decision.
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The sixth-year Ole Miss coach is set to announce Saturday if he’s going to stay at Ole Miss or leave for another job, likely LSU. Kiffin’s job status has dominated college football over the last half of November as he’s the biggest domino of what could be a raucous coaching carousel.
Immediately after the game, Kiffin said that he still didn’t know what he was going to do.
“No, I haven’t,” Kiffin said when asked by ESPN. “I’ve got a lot of praying to do to figure that out tomorrow.”
If Kiffin stays, it’s a foregone conclusion that Ole Miss is playing a home game to start the postseason. If Kiffin goes, the Rebels could also go … on the road. College Football Playoff selection committee chair Hunter Yurachek said earlier in the week that the committee could consider Kiffin’s departure in its final seeding process if he’s not coaching the team in the postseason. It’s impossible to forecast whether or not the committee would drop Ole Miss to No. 9 or even No. 10 without Kiffin. Heck, the committee might not know, either.
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On Friday, Ole Miss didn’t have any trouble with Mississippi State. The Rebels scored 10 straight points after Mississippi State cut Ole Miss’ lead to eight points less than five minutes into the second half. And after the lead dropped to 12 points with 10:40 to go, Trinidad Chambliss hit Deuce Alexander for an 88-yard TD two plays later to put the game away.
Chambliss finished the game 23-of-34 passing for 359 yards and four touchdowns as four players had at least 66 receiving yards.
Mississippi State freshman QB Kamario Taylor made his first start of the season after Blake Shapen had been the team’s starting QB all season long. Taylor showed why he can be the Bulldogs’ QB of the future as he rushed 20 times for 173 yards and two scores. Taylor not only made the first start of his career against MSU’s biggest rival, he also did so with the Bulldogs’ postseason hopes on the line. Mississippi State needed a sixth win for a bowl game but instead finishes the season 5-7.
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The rivalry also had its annual moment of chippiness in the first half. A skirmish ensued after an apparent Chambliss fumble — the play was ruled an incompletion after a replay review — as Mississippi State players even emerged from the sideline.
Though the fracas looked dramatic, it didn’t result in any ejections. Only three personal foul penalties were assessed and the penalties offset.
