When a decision had to be made, Lane Kiffin went for the win.
With Ole Miss leading 24-19, quarterback Trinidad Chambliss tried to convert a 3rd and 4 at the LSU 35 with a run, but instead of going down, he decided to reach for the chains and went out of bounds. After a timeout, Kiffin sent the offense back on the field and dialed up the perfect play call that left Dae'Quan Wright wide open for 20-yard gain that got the first down and ended the game.
4th down conversion by Ole Miss to beat LSU and Lane Kiffin is pumped pic.twitter.com/9gMFSWEr43
— Steelers Depot 7⃣ (@Steelersdepot) September 27, 2025
Kiffin couldn't help but pump his fist after that one. The completion put Chambliss over the 300-yard mark for the third straight game and lifted the Rebels to a 5-0 record (3-0 in the SEC) this season. Ole Miss is likely to be ranked well inside the top 10 after the win over the No. 4 Tigers. With No. 8 Florida State losing on Friday and a guarantee that either No. 3 Penn State or No. 6 Oregon will lose tonight, the Rebels will benefit from the movement in the polls.
After the game, Kiffin told Molly McGrath that he believed his offense was going to make the right play, even after the mistake by Chambliss on the previous snap.
"Trinidad made up for going out of bounds," Kiffin remarked. "You know we believe in our players to go for it on fourth down a lot. I'm glad they made plays.
Fans, media shower praise on Kiffin for game-winning call
Going for it on fourth down in that situation is nothing new, but the fact that Kiffin schemed up a play where Wright was so wide open was impressive.
lane kiffin going for a 4th & 3 to ice the game and scheming up a receiver so open that there wasn’t even a defender on the screen when the pass was thrown. that’s why he’s the 🐐
— Tej Seth (@tejfbanalytics) September 27, 2025
It wasn't just fans that appreciated Kiffin's actions in that moment. Ralph D. Russo, longtime college football writer for the Associated Press and now The Athletic, gave Kiffin the ultimate compliment.
If you have a fourth and short for your life, Kiffin is on the short list of guys you want drawing up that play.
— Ralph D. Russo (@ralphDrussoATH) September 27, 2025
Erasing memories of the past
With the win, Ole Miss has taken the past three Magnolia Bowls played in Oxford. The series will continue with LSU one of the Rebels' permanent opponent and the teams will meet again next year in Death Valley. Ole Miss has yet to breakthrough in Baton Rouge under Kiffin and they had a great shot last year before losing 29-26 in overtime.
Kiffin admitted to McGrath that last year's game was on his mind this week and it made today's win that much sweeter.
"That one hurt a lot. We gave that away, We were ahead the whole time down there in Baton Rouge, It feels good to get back on the winning side," Kiffin said. "We screwed that one up last year, but we finished this one this year."