OXFORD, Miss. \u2013 Ole Miss has one of the most efficient offenses in college football. Texas has one of the stingiest defenses. When the No. 7 Rebels visit No. 19 Texas on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. CT on ABC, the biggest matchup on the field will be Trinidad Chambliss and the Ole Miss offense against Will Muschamp\u2019s Longhorn defense.<\/p>\n
Ole Miss averages 444.5 yards and 37.5 points per game. Texas allows just 272.5 yards and 17.8 points per game, ranking 12th nationally in total defense. Something has to give. Here is a detailed look at how the matchup breaks down, using both teams\u2019 official game notes.<\/p>\n
The numbers at a glance<\/p>\n
Category
\nOle Miss offense
\nTexas defense<\/p>\n
Points per game
\n37.5 (20th)
\n17.8 allowed (29th)<\/p>\n
Total yards per game
\n444.5 (36th)
\n272.5 allowed (12th)<\/p>\n
Rushing yards per game
\n153.8 (72nd)
\n106.3 allowed (28th)<\/p>\n
Passing yards per game
\n290.7 (13th)
\n166.2 allowed (13th)<\/p>\n
Third-down rate
\n47.9% (24th)
\n33.3% allowed (T-33rd)<\/p>\n
Red zone scoring
\n100% (T-1st)
\n81.3% allowed (T-57th)<\/p>\n
National rankings are among FBS teams.<\/p>\n
Up front: A rebuilt line against a pass rush missing its star<\/p>\n
The Ole Miss offensive line has been the foundation of everything this season. The Rebels allow just 0.83 sacks per game, the fewest in the SEC and 10th in the FBS, and they allow only 3.2 tackles for loss per game, which ranks 15th nationally. Against Missouri, Pro Football Focus graded the Ole Miss line as the best unit in the FBS for the week, and right guard Patrick Kutas was named SEC Co-Offensive Lineman of the Week.<\/p>\n
The question is who will be in the lineup. Center Brycen Sanders and left tackle Terez Davis are both listed as questionable on Thursday\u2019s availability report after leaving the Missouri game<\/a>. Ole Miss has already shown it can adjust. Kutas slid from right guard to center against Missouri, Troy Everett stepped in at guard and Connor Howes filled in at tackle, and the offense kept rolling. Kutas said the hardest part of playing center is making the line calls, but he added that he already thinks \u201clike a center\u201d even when he lines up at guard.<\/p>\n On the other side, Texas has 19 sacks in six games, and Golding said the Longhorns \u201ccreate a lot of pressure with four,\u201d which lets them drop more players into coverage. Much of that pressure has come from edge rusher Colin Simmons, who leads the FBS in sacks. But Simmons has been ruled out for Saturday, and fellow edge Richard Wesley is out as well. That takes away the one player most capable of wrecking a game by himself, and gives the Ole Miss line a real chance to control the line of scrimmage.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re a really talented defense,\u201d Kutas said this week. \u201cThey got a lot of versatile players, big dudes, athletic dudes. I think it\u2019ll be a really good matchup.\u201d<\/p>\n The run game: Lacy and Frazier against a stout front<\/p>\n Ole Miss ran for a season-high 257 yards against Missouri, with Kewan Lacy (122 yards) and Makhi Frazier (101 yards) both topping 100. For the season, Lacy has 352 yards and five touchdowns at 5.7 yards per carry, and Frazier has 254 yards at 5.6 per carry. As a team, the Rebels average 4.9 yards per rush.<\/p>\n Texas will be the toughest run defense they have seen. The Longhorns allow just 106.3 rushing yards per game and have given up only four rushing touchdowns all season. Lacy is off the injury report after managing injuries for weeks, but expect Ole Miss to lean on both backs again. Having two backs who can carry the load keeps them fresh against a physical front, and Frazier said the Rebels can run the ball \u201cno matter who\u2019s in there.\u201d<\/p>\n Lacy also has extra motivation. The Dallas native grew up a Texas fan, and he enters the game with 29 rushing touchdowns since the start of the 2025 season, second-most among FBS running backs in that span.<\/p>\n The passing game: Chambliss against a defense that doesn\u2019t give up big plays<\/p>\n Chambliss has completed 142 of 210 passes (67.6 percent) for 1,676 yards, 14 touchdowns and four interceptions, and he has run for six more scores. He has thrown a touchdown pass in 19 straight games, the second-longest streak in program history and three shy of Chad Kelly\u2019s record.<\/p>\n His favorite target has been Deuce Alexander, who leads the team with 35 catches for 523 yards and five touchdowns. Tight end Caleb Odom (21 catches, 267 yards, two touchdowns), Traylon Ray (20 catches, 276 yards) and Horatio Fields (19 catches, 234 yards) give Chambliss plenty of options, and Caleb Cunningham caught his first career touchdown against Missouri.<\/p>\n Texas will make him work for it. The Longhorns allow just 166.2 passing yards per game and have given up only four passing touchdowns all season. Most importantly, they have allowed just 19 plays of 15 yards or more, the fewest of any team in the FBS. Golding said the Texas secondary is \u201creally sound on the back end\u201d and mixes up its coverages, so Ole Miss may have to string together long drives instead of relying on big plays.<\/p>\n The one area where Texas has been vulnerable is takeaways. The Longhorns have only three interceptions this season, so Chambliss should be able to take some chances downfield without much risk of turnovers.<\/p>\n Third downs and the red zone will decide it<\/p>\n If big plays are hard to come by, the game will come down to two things: staying on the field on third down and finishing drives.<\/p>\n Ole Miss converts 47.9 percent of its third downs, which ranks 24th nationally, while Texas holds opponents to 33.3 percent. Chambliss\u2019 ability to extend plays with his legs could be the difference, especially if the Texas pass rush is short-handed.<\/p>\n In the red zone, Ole Miss has been perfect. The Rebels have scored on all 24 trips inside the 20 this season, with 21 touchdowns and three field goals. Texas allows scores on 81.3 percent of opponents\u2019 red zone trips. If Ole Miss keeps cashing in, it puts real pressure on a Texas offense that averages 30.2 points per game, 64th nationally.<\/p>\n Tempo is a weapon<\/p>\n Ole Miss plays fast, averaging 23.5 seconds per play, eighth-fastest in the country. Golding called the Texas defense \u201cvery multiple,\u201d with a lot of different looks and coverages. Tempo can force the Longhorns to line up quickly and limit how much Muschamp can disguise. It could also wear down a pass rush that may already be thin on the edges.<\/p>\n The bottom line<\/p>\n This is strength against strength. Texas has the best defense Ole Miss has seen this season, and it is playing at home in front of more than 100,000 fans. But the Rebels have the protection, the running backs and the quarterback to win the matchup, especially with Simmons out.<\/p>\n The keys for Ole Miss: keep Chambliss clean, stay ahead of the chains with Lacy and Frazier, take what the defense gives instead of forcing big plays, and keep that perfect red zone record intact. Do that, and the Rebels can score enough to win in Austin.<\/p>\n No. 7 Ole Miss visits No. 19 Texas at 6:30 p.m. CT Saturday on ABC.<\/p>\n More Ole Miss vs. Texas: Ole Miss defense vs. Texas offense<\/a> | Ole Miss vs. Texas by the numbers<\/a> | Latest injury report<\/a> | Patrick Kutas on sliding to center<\/a> | Makhi Frazier steps up<\/a><\/p>\n \n\tRelated\n<\/p>\n Evelyn Van Pelt <\/p>\n Evelyn has covered sports for over two decades, beginning her journalism career as a sports writer for a newspaper in Austin, Texas. She attended Texas A&M and majored in English. Evelyn’s love for Ole Miss began when her daughter Katie attended the university on a volleyball scholarship. Evelyn created the Rebel Walk in 2013 and has served as publisher and managing editor since its inception. Email Evie at: Evie@TheRebelWalk.com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"OXFORD, Miss. \u2013 Ole Miss has one of the most efficient offenses in college football. 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