Ole Miss is trying to answer one of the most important questions on its roster before fall camp wraps up: who becomes Trinidad Chambliss’ go-to receiver in 2026?
That question feels bigger now because the Rebels are staring at a fresh reset at wideout after a wave of departures. De'Zhaun Stribling is with the San Francisco 49ers.
Harrison Wallace III is now an Arizona Cardinal. Cayden Lee, along with quarterback Austin Simmons, entered the transfer portal and ended up at Missouri.
Those were major pieces of the passing game, and they all walked out the door after helping shape last season’s run.
Chambliss already showed in the Allstate Sugar Bowl what having the right target can do. With under a minute left against Georgia and the game tied at 34, he hit Stribling behind the defense for a huge gain. Ole Miss then finished the job with a field goal and a safety, winning 39-34 and moving on to the College Football Playoff Semifinals against Miami.
Now the Rebels have to find the next version of that connection.
The most natural candidate is Deuce Alexander. He was the team’s No. 3 receiver last season and still led all returning pass catchers from the CFP team with 684 yards on 44 catches and two touchdowns.
His speed jumps off the page, and he already has chemistry with Chambliss. With offensive coordinator John David Baker now running the offense, Alexander looks like the centerpiece.
But Ole Miss knows he can’t carry the whole load by himself.
That’s where the transfer additions come in, and Pete Golding went after that market hard.
Johntay Cook, a Syracuse transfer, has been one of the early standouts in fall camp. At 5-11, he brings quickness that could make him a natural fit in the slot.
It’s Cook’s third school in four years after two seasons at Texas, then a stop at Syracuse, and now a return to the SEC with Ole Miss. His best production came in 2025, when he posted 549 yards and two touchdowns with the Orange, and the Rebels clearly believe he can help this passing game right away.
If Ole Miss needs someone to work the short middle of the field on third-and-medium, Cook could be that guy.
Horatio Fields gives the group a different look. At 6-3, he has the kind of frame that can help replace some of the size Ole Miss lost.
Fields is also at his third school, beginning at Wake Forest before spending last season at Auburn. Injuries limited him to four games in 2025, but he had his breakout year the season before at Wake Forest, finishing with 463 yards and four touchdowns on a 4-8 team.
He looks like the closest physical match to Stribling, and his size makes him a logical option on the outside opposite Alexander.
There’s more depth behind those names, too. Darrell Gill Jr., another Syracuse transfer, has back-to-back 500-yard seasons and seven total touchdowns over that span. Caleb Cunningham is also in the mix, and the 6-1, 215-pound receiver who signed with Ole Miss over Alabama still feels like a player whose breakout could be close.
So the Rebels are not short on bodies or talent at receiver. That part is clear. The bigger issue is whether the new group can replace what the portal brought in last year, when those additions became a huge reason Ole Miss reached the College Football Playoff for the first time in school history.
That’s the test now for Baker’s offense: keep the momentum going, find separation, and give Chambliss the kind of targets that can make this thing work again.
Fall camp is still moving along as the country waits for Week 0 and then Ole Miss’ opener against Louisville. Kickoff on Sept. 6 is set for 6 p.m. CT on ABC.
In Other News...
Ole Miss Is Fighting LSU For A QB Decision That Could Matter Big
A key quarterback target is nearing his decision, and the ripple effect could be felt well beyond one recruiting board. Ole Miss has been battling LSU in the race for a highly regarded passer, with both programs trying to close on a player whose offer list also includes Oregon, Tennessee, Michigan and Florida. In a rivalry where recruiting wins can carry as much weight as Saturdays in the fall, this one has the feel of a meaningful early swing.
The timing adds to the anticipation, with a commitment expected in the middle of August and the attention likely to follow every hint leading up to it. For Ole Miss, landing the right quarterback in this cycle would do more than add talent at the position - it would give the Rebels a major boost in the 2028 class and another reminder that their recruiting battles with LSU are still very much alive. [Read more 🡒]
Kirk Herbstreit Just Put Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss In The Spotlight
Trinidad Chambliss has already authored one of the more unlikely rise stories in college football, and now he has a national voice pushing him even higher. ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit said the Ole Miss quarterback could become the new face of the sport this year, a label that would have sounded far-fetched not long ago for a player who started at Division II Ferris State, won a national championship there, and then made the jump to Oxford.
Chambliss only took over as the Rebels' starter after an injury to Austin Simmons, but once he got the job, he helped steer Ole Miss through an 11-1 regular season, a College Football Playoff win and a Sugar Bowl victory. With one more season ahead of him after a successful court case against the NCAA, the quarterback now has a chance to turn a remarkable story into something even bigger, and the attention around him is only going to grow from here. [Read more 🡒]
Ole Miss Now Faces The Real Test Of Trinidad Chambliss' Breakout
Trinidad Chambliss arrived at Ole Miss as one of those under-the-radar quarterback additions that suddenly looks much bigger in hindsight. After stepping in as the starter in 2025 because of an injury to the previous quarterback, he turned in a breakout season that included nearly 4,000 passing yards and 30 total touchdowns, a surge that put him firmly at the center of the Rebels offense and made his path to Oxford look like a sharp bit of evaluation from Charlie Weis Jr. and Joe Judge, who were the ones to bring his tape to Lane Kiffin.
Now the more revealing season is ahead. Chambliss will be working under new offensive coordinator John David Baker, and for Ole Miss the question is no longer whether he can produce, but how much of that production was tied to Kiffins system and influence. The Rebels do not need a reminder that quarterback development can be a delicate business, but they are about to get one anyway, with Chambliss next step offering a clearer read on just how much of last year belonged to the player and how much belonged to the coach. [Read more 🡒]