Pete Golding got to check one box in his young head coaching career — defeat a team not ranked in the top-25. After four straight games against ranked opponents, the Ole Miss frontman and his group finally faced an unranked foe and walked away as 41-9 victors.
No. 9 Ole Miss (2-0) was not perfect in its 2026-27 home opener versus Charlotte (0-2) on Saturday but did enough to win in blowout fashion. Star Rebel quarterback Trinidad Chambliss was an efficient 23 of 26 in the air, with 225 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He notably spread the ball around, tossing complete passes to seven targets.
Deuce Alexander, after a stellar showing against Louisville last weekend, was Chambliss’ top target, hauling in 8 receptions for 76 yards. Choctaw County native Caleb Cunningham had 6 catches for 65 yards. Auburn transfer Horatio Fields and Syracuse transfer Johntay Cook II were the recipients of the Rebel signal caller’s touchdown passes. Standout running back Kewan Lacy was as advertised, logging 87 yards and 2 touchdowns on 13 carries.
“I felt like we got off to a good start in the game, which we didn’t have versus Louisville last week,” Chambliss said. “I feel like we played solid as a whole, but there’s a lot that we can improve on, like some drives where we punted the ball or turned over the ball.”
The Rebels showed offensive improvement in the first half of the game, scoring on five of six drives. Placekicker Lucas Carneiro was responsible for two of the scores, connecting on 57-yard and 41-yard field goals. Defensively, Golding’s group bent at times, but did not break. A blocked field goal by defensive end Kam Franklin and a near-pick-six by safety Nick Cull upended Charlotte’s chances of scoring in the first 30 minutes of action.
The second half was a different story, and like in the season opener versus the Cardinals, the Rebel defense showed major weaknesses. And Charlotte capitalized. An explosive run at the start of the third quarter paved the way for the 49ers to eat into a 27-point deficit and get on the board with a 28-yard field goal by Ian Kelly. A quick three-and-out by the Ole Miss offense, a careless facemask by freshman Landon Barnes, and coverage busts allowed the 49ers to score again, with Kelly connecting from 24 yards out. Charlotte burned 11 minutes of clock in the third quarter.
“I was really disappointed with how we came out in the third quarter,” Golding said, adding that his focus throughout this past week was improving in the secondary. “We re-hit that at halftime, and came out, and they got points on the first drive. Then, we were out on offense and went three-and-out and punted. That was disappointing.”
Ole Miss quickly rebutted early in the fourth quarter, with Chambliss finding Fields to take a 34-6 lead. Another successful Charlotte drive yielded a field goal for the 49ers. The Rebels turned to backup quarterback and George County native Deuce Knight to run the offense with 9:47 remaining in the game. Knight methodically moved the ball downfield, using both his arm and legs. The southpaw found Dillon Alfred for a 34-yard gain and later hurdled a defender to get into the end zone on a 7-yard keeper.
“He went the whole week telling us that he was going to hurdle somebody … We believed him too,” Field said of Knight’s big play. “It was very exciting to see him do that.”
Defensively, linebacker Luke Ferrelli led the way for Ole Miss, amassing 6 tackles. Edge rusher Jonathan Maldonado recorded 4 tackles, one of which was in the backfield.
Charlotte quarterback Cole Gonzales completed 14 of 21 passes for 128 yards and a pick. His backup, Conner Harrell, was 5 of 6 for 50 yards. Fifth-year senior Chance Williams was the leading rusher for the 49ers, with 74 yards on 9 carries. Charlotte had 322 total yards compared to Ole Miss’ 420.
On the injury front, Ole Miss was without starting right tackle Tommy Kinsler, tight end Caleb Odom, defensive back Sharif Denson, and defensive back Antonio Kite. Golding said he’s positive Denson, a Florida transfer, will make his Ole Miss debut next week versus No. 8 LSU (2-0) and that Odom will be in action, while Kite is anticipated to be a late-week decision. The Rebels will be required to release an injury report on Wednesday.
As for the upcoming matchup against the Tigers, Oxford will be at the epicenter of the college football world, with eyes glued to Lane Kiffin taking on his former team. Chambliss, who played under Kiffin’s tutelage last season, said it’s going to be strange to see his former head coach and former offensive coordinator, Charlie Weis Jr., next week. That, however, will not be his focus, as he plans to stick close with his current coaches going into the first SEC battle of the season.
“It’s going to be weird, but it is what it is,” Chambliss said. “I’ve been seeing [Pete Golding], [John David Baker], and Coach Judge for the past eight months, so I’m used to seeing that every day.”
Ole Miss and LSU will kick off from Vaught-Hemingway Stadium at 6:30 p.m. CT, with ABC and participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations on the broadcast.
