Jordan Rodgers didn’t leave much room for debate on Monday at SEC Media Days.
The ESPN analyst, speaking during the SEC Now marathon broadcast from Tampa, put Trinidad Chambliss at the top of the quarterback conversation - not just in the SEC, but anywhere.
“I think he’s the best quarterback in the entire country and I don’t think it’s that close,” Rodgers said. “There was no quarterback in the country who was more explosive while being efficient. He was top 15 in yards-per-attempt and also protected the ball at an elite rate - something you don’t expect from a guy coming from the FCS level.”
Chambliss earned his way into this spot the hard way. He successfully sued the NCAA to gain a sixth year of college eligibility, which will allow him to play at Ole Miss in 2026. Last season, he came off the bench in mid-September after Austin Simmons was injured and took over from there, helping push the Rebels to the 2025-26 College Football Playoff.
The numbers backed up the surge. Chambliss threw for 3,937 yards and 22 touchdowns, and he was intercepted only three times as Ole Miss finished 13-2 and reached the CFP semifinals.
Rodgers thinks there’s still more to come, even with the coaching changes around him.
“I only expect him to get better,” Rodgers added. “And I mean that - even without (now-LSU coach Lane) Kiffin and (former Ole Miss offensive coordinator) Charlie Weis Jr. I think they reloaded around him.”
In Other News...
Mississippi State Players Spark Backlash With Viral Locker Room Video
A Mississippi State locker-room video has stirred up an unwelcome conversation around the Bulldogs as players were shown taking part in the viral Quiet On The Creek TikTok dance. The clip spread quickly and, as is often the case with anything that catches on for the wrong reasons, it brought a mix of amusement and criticism from fans and observers looking at the program through the lens of the upcoming season.
The timing is what gives the reaction extra bite. Mississippi State is coming off a 5-8 finish and still wound up with a bowl invitation despite not meeting the usual eligibility standard, so every bit of offseason attention gets filtered through questions about focus and direction. For a team trying to reset its image, a locker-room trend can seem harmless in the moment and still turn into a broader talking point once it starts making the rounds. [Read more 🡒]
SEC Power Shift Talk Should Have Mississippi State Fans On Edge
The latest SEC chatter has Mississippi State fans looking at the bigger picture, because commissioner Greg Sankey did not dismiss the idea that the league is weighing major changes to its place inside the NCAA structure. His comments came with the usual league-wide frustration points in the background, from legislation and NIL transparency to the way the College Football Playoff is set up, all of which have helped fuel a more serious conversation than the conference usually likes to have in public.
Sankey also made clear the SEC is not rushing toward a clean break, even as school presidents continue to think through what the future could look like. He pointed to the leagues recent run of success, including 13 national championships, and said he would rather see the national organization work in a healthier way than force a split, but the fact the discussion is happening at all is enough to keep everyone around Starkville paying close attention. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Opens 2026 As The SEC Standard With Texas Right There
The 247Sports networks preseason SEC poll set the early tone for 2026, with Georgia edging Texas for the No. 1 spot after the Bulldogs run to last seasons conference title. Ole Miss and Texas A&M were tied for third, while Alabama, Oklahoma, LSU and Tennessee filled out the top eight, giving the league its usual mix of familiar powers and teams expected to push the race from the start.
For Mississippi State, the projection landed much closer to the leagues bottom tier, grouped with Kentucky and Arkansas in a reminder of how steep the climb still looks in the SEC. The rankings are only a preseason snapshot, of course, but they also frame the challenge ahead for a program trying to move up in a conference where the margin between the top and the bottom can feel awfully thin before the season even begins. [Read more 🡒]