By BRETT MARTEL AP Sports Writer
OXFORD, Miss. — Trinidad Chambliss ran for two touchdowns and passed for another, and No. 6 Mississippi looked unfazed by the defection of Coach Lane Kiffin, beating No. 17 Tulane, 41-10, on Saturday in a first-round game of the College Football Playoff.
Scoring runs of 20 yards by Kewan Lacy and 4 yards by Chambliss gave Ole Miss (12-1) a 14-0 lead before eight minutes had elapsed in the coaching debut of Pete Golding, who was promoted from defensive coordinator after Kiffin left for LSU on Nov. 30.
Next up for Golding and Mississippi: a CFP quarterfinal against No. 2 Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1. Georgia handed the Rebels their only loss of the season.
Tulane (11-3) and quarterback Jake Retzlaff moved the ball effectively at times, but the Rebels – who beat the Green Wave, 45-10, on Sept. 20 – remained comfortably ahead throughout. Cornerback Jaylon Braxton had an early interception, and the Rebels’ defense had multiple fumble recoveries and fourth-down stops.
While Kiffin had asked to keep coaching Ole Miss through the playoff even while working for one of its SEC rivals, Athletic Director Keith Carter would not allow it. So the Rebels entered arguably the most significant game ever played at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium with a new coach – not to mention an unprecedented level of looming staff and roster uncertainty for a team contending for a national title.
In Mississippi’s famed Grove, artwork around tailgate tents depicted Kiffin in a negative light, including one showing him on a Christmas “naughty” list, with Golding in the “nice” column.
When Golding walked onto the field during warm-ups, the crowd roared. Fans continued cheering as Eli Manning, a former Mississippi QB and two-time Super Bowl winner with the New York Giants, greeted the Rebels’ new coach on the sideline.
On the opposite sideline was Tulane coach Jon Sumrall, who was permitted to keep coaching the Green Wave after being hired by Florida. His hopes of returning to Tulane’s home city of New Orleans to prepare for the Sugar Bowl were dashed, and he’ll be packing up for Gainesville, Florida, to join the Gators.
Chambliss, who briefly left the game late in the first half after a big hit during an 11-yard scramble, finished with 282 yards passing. Lacy rushed for 87 yards before heading to the locker room in the fourth quarter with an apparent left shoulder injury. De’Zhaun Stribling caught five passes for 79 yards, including a 13-yard TD.
LSU transfer Logan Diggs added a 3-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Retzlaff finished with 306 yards passing and a TD for Tulane, whose loss dropped non-power conference teams to 0-3 in CFP games (with James Madison playing at Oregon later Saturday night). Jamauri McClure gained 84 yards on 15 carries.
THE TAKEAWAY
Tulane: The Green Wave could not afford a poor start on defense and got exactly that as the Rebels scored two TDs on their first seven offensive plays. As in the teams’ first meeting, Tulane moved the ball in spurts, finishing with 421 yards, but could sustain drives long enough to score.
Mississippi: Kiffin’s absence didn’t inhibit the Rebels’ explosiveness on offense – at least not against a team from a non-power conference. The Rebels finished 497 yards of total offense, including four plays that went for 25 yards or more.
More to come on this story.