Ole Miss got a welcome boost last week when starting left tackle Terez Davis returned against Auburn, but the Rebels still had to manage a few bumps along the way. Linebacker Luke Ferrelli and cornerback Jalyn Crawford were both limited by injuries before the Week 9 game, even though each started against Auburn.
The early outlook for this weekend’s showdown with Georgia is better. In Wednesday’s initial availability report for the top-10 matchup, Ferrelli and Crawford were listed as probable, which points to both being ready to go.
Ole Miss will, however, be without Kewan Lacy again. The shoulder injury will keep him out for a third game this season as he continues to recover.
Head coach Pete Golding said Ferrelli was dealing with the ankle issue all week before the Auburn game and was essentially a late call.
“We kind of said Saturday Luke (Ferrelli) was banged up all week. (He) has been for a while with the ankle.
(Auburn) was going to be kind of a game time decision on him. Felt like he could go start out the game, and then just didn’t feel like he was at 100% to be able to play efficient football,” head coach Pete Golding noted this week of Ferrelli’s injury.
“So Tah’j (Butler) stepped in and played really well. I think he’s getting better every week, becoming more comfortable with the system.”
Golding also pointed to the bigger picture of keeping players available through the grind of the season, while making it clear that injuries won’t change the standard inside the program.
“The strength and conditioning component of that and the nutrition staff and all those type of things are a huge impact on that and trying to keep guys healthy,” Golding explained. “For us, it’s how many guys can we get in the off season in the summer and fall camp to play winning football?
And so regardless of who’s in there and when and what game, can we trust them to do their job? I think that’s the thing that’s hard for some of these guys when they’re not getting early playing time.
To still prepare like a starter and still practice like a starter, because you really don’t know when that time is going to be…You got to come in and go to work and prepare really hard. I think we got a lot of guys right now that are practicing the right way (and) preparing the right way.
When they get the opportunity, they got to take advantage of it.”
No. 10 Ole Miss and No.
2 Georgia are set to kick off Saturday at 6:30 p.m. CT on ABC.
In Other News...
Ole Miss Fans Just Got A Tommy Tuberville Reminder They Wont Ignore
Tommy Tuberville is headed back into the political spotlight after defeating Democratic challenger Doug Jones to become Alabamas next governor, winning by just over 4% of the vote. He will take over for Kay Ivey in January, adding another chapter to a career that has already stretched from the sideline to the statehouse, and it is a name Ole Miss fans know well from his time coaching the Rebels.
For Ole Miss supporters, Tubervilles path is a reminder of how often college football and politics seem to intersect in the South. Before his run in government, he built his coaching rsum at Ole Miss, Auburn, Texas Tech and Cincinnati, and his latest move puts him back in the kind of statewide conversation that tends to linger around old SEC figures long after they leave the field. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Heads Into Georgia With One Defensive Weakness Exposed
Ole Miss heads into its matchup with Georgia carrying a defensive concern that has been hard to ignore. Tackling has been a recurring issue for Pete Goldings group, and it comes at a bad time with the Bulldogs bringing one of the SECs more punishing offenses, built on explosive plays and yards after contact. For a game with real weight for the Rebels 2026 season, the margin for error looks awfully thin.
Golding has already acknowledged the problem, but the plan does not appear to involve any major overhaul before kickoff. Instead, Ole Miss is banking on cleaning up the basics and holding up against a Georgia attack that can turn routine snaps into big gains if the first defender does not finish the play. For a defense that has shown its vulnerability, this is the kind of test that can expose whether the issue is a temporary flaw or something deeper. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Found The Message Trinidad Chambliss Needed Most
Trinidad Chambliss had been carrying the kind of pressure that can tighten up even a confident quarterback, but Ole Miss found a way to get him back to playing freer against Auburn. After a recent slump, the coaching staff urged him to simplify things and lean on his instincts, a reset that showed up in the second half when his decision-making sharpened and his comfort level returned.
Pete Golding said the message to Chambliss was less about outside noise and more about staying locked into his own job. For a quarterback trying to steady himself in the middle of a rough stretch, that kind of clarity can matter as much as any schematic tweak, and it helped Ole Miss get the version of Chambliss it needed to help finish off the victory. [Read more 🡒]