How has Ole Miss' offense changed with Kewan Lacy's injury?
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While Ole Miss’ defense has taken the bulk of the criticism over the first four weeks of the 2026 season, the Rebels’ offense has been a work-in-progress at times as well. An inconsistent running game hasn’t helped matters.
Ole Miss was without the services of star running back Kewan Lacy last weekend at Florida, as the junior was out with a shoulder injury he suffered in the third quarter against LSU. Lacy, who also left the opener against Louisville with a leg injury, has just 39 carries for 191 yards and four touchdowns through the No. 9 Rebels’ (3-1, 1-1 SEC) first four games; he led the FBS with 306 carries a season ago, rushing for 1,567 yards and 24 touchdowns. Ole Miss is currently 118th nationally with 117.5 rushing yards per game after averaging 176.3 rushing yards per game in 2025.
In a 52-28 loss in Gainesville, Ole Miss managed just six first-half points and finished with 128 rushing yards. The Rebels ran for 63 yards in their win over LSU, with Lacy accounting for 43 of them before his injury.
“This is the greatest team sport ever invented. We came with 74 dudes. … That’s plenty of guys. So, this isn’t an excuse of who played, who didn’t play. We’re a team,” Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding said. “ … We’ve got talented guys at every position that can come in and be able to play winning football. So, I’m not putting this game on Kewan at all.”
In the last five full quarters without Lacy in the lineup, sixth-year quarterback Trinidad Chambliss is 32 of 43 passing (74.4%) for 360 yards with one touchdown and an interception. He has also carried the ball eight times for 58 yards and has three rushing touchdowns. Sophomore JT Lindsey was the lead back when Lacy was injured against LSU with four rushes for 20 yards and a key two-point conversion. Lindsey and junior Makhi Frazier split the rushing load against Florida with 11 carries and eight carries for 31 yards and 42 yards, respectively.
According to Pro Football Focus, 35 of Ole Miss’ rushing yards against Florida came off the left side of the center while another 35 came between the right guard and tackle. In 2025, Lacy was most prolific off the right side of the center (351 yards), while his second-most prolific rushing direction was off the tight end on the left side (233 yards), racking up nine runs of 10 yards or more in each direction, according to PFF. The Rebels totaled 25 rushing yards in those two areas against the Gators.
“Missing Kewan definitely hurts. He’s a dynamic player. He puts a lot of pressure on defensive coordinators, and you kind of have to scheme for him and me and our whole offense to begin with,” Chambliss said. “The drop-off in our running back room, I don’t think there’s a big drop-off, honestly. I love how JT plays, I love how Makhi plays and I love how Josh Dye plays, too. They’re all tough-nosed running backs, and when we need them, they show up. And I feel like they played really good today, so I’m proud of them.”
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