{"id":476094,"date":"2026-10-25T06:50:25","date_gmt":"2026-10-25T06:50:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/476094\/"},"modified":"2026-10-25T06:50:25","modified_gmt":"2026-10-25T06:50:25","slug":"ole-miss-fought-hard-but-its-margin-for-error-is-gone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/476094\/","title":{"rendered":"Ole Miss Fought Hard, But Its Margin For Error Is Gone"},"content":{"rendered":"

AUSTIN, Texas \u2014\u00a0To say the first half for Ole Miss<\/a> went poorly against Texas<\/a>, would be a massive understatement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Rebels were out-gained by more than 100 total yards and went through six consecutive scoreless drives that ended in either a punt or interception. Ole Miss went into the locker room down 24-3, and was fortunate to not be trailing by more.\u00a0<\/p>\n

However, the second half was a completely different story. It didn\u2019t take long for the momentum to swing the Rebels\u2019 direction either.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Less than two minutes into the second half a Blake Purchase strip sack finally broke the ice for Ole Miss, helping them get across the goal line for the first time after Kam Franklin turned the fumble into a touchdown. The critical defensive play sparked Ole Miss to score 21 unanswered points to pull itself all the way back into the game late into the fourth quarter.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Rebels would have to fight back late in the final frame after surrendering the next 10 points, and were resilient again. A field goal, followed by a successful onside kick, gave Trinidad Chambliss and the offense one last opportunity to tie or take a lead on the game\u2019s final play, but the Rebels\u2019 29-yard prayer was intercepted.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Texas absolutely deserves credit for its ability to finish the game out and its defensive game plan for much of the contest, but Ole Miss didn\u2019t do itself any favors with the amount of first half setbacks it had.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

What the Loss Means \"Oct<\/p>\n

Oct 24, 2026; Austin, Texas, USA; Mississippi Rebels head coach Pete Golding looks up during the first half against the Texas Longhorns at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect<\/p>\n

The Rebels\u2019 second half fight in front of a crowd of more than 100,000 was admirable and could be a testament to the type of team they actually are, but Saturday night\u2019s loss at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium essentially erased the margin for error going forward.<\/p>\n

The loss drops Ole Miss to 5-2 (3-2) on the year and puts much more pressure on the Rebels the rest of the way. At the very least, Ole Miss entered the season expecting itself to qualify for the College Football Playoffs by the end of the regular season and will operate like it can\u2019t lose any of its next five games.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Going into the top-25 matchup Texas was the team with its back against the wall, putting itself in a must-win position after dropping two-straight. Now, after the Longhorns survived another potential blown lead, Ole Miss will know that feeling for the rest of the 2026 season.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe room for error is definitely smaller now. Even after the loss to Florida, I feel like it was still slim there too. You never want to lose a game, especially when it\u2019s achievable to win. I feel like Florida and tonight were games we could\u2019ve won. That just goes on me as a quarterback. Having three points in the first half is unacceptable and I take full responsibility for that, there\u2019s no excuse for that. But, yeah, now we gotta win out.\u201d <\/p>\n

That said, despite the loss, head coach Pete Golding knows everything that the Rebels wanted out of the season is still in front of them.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, 100 percent (everything is still in front of the team). There\u2019s not an undefeated team left. We control our own destiny and we ain\u2019t got any more \u2018my bads\u2019,\u201d Golding said following the loss. \u201cThat\u2019s what I said in the locker room \u2014 \u2018You ain\u2019t got no days off anymore\u2019. That\u2019s over. It\u2019s not easy week in and week out, but we got the right group and the right type of guys. We got good players, so we\u2019re gonna go to work and see what happens.\u201d<\/p>\n

Peeking ahead, Ole Miss’ next two games will be in front of its home crowd against Auburn and a top-10 Georgia team. Two games that are winnable if the Rebels play at their best, but only time will tell to see which version shows up at a favorable venue like Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. <\/p>\n

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