hottytoddy
Trinidad Chambliss hasn't lost his ability to make plays with his legs; he's simply been focused on beating defenses through the air for most of the 2023 season. Just a year ago, Chambliss was among the most electrifying dual-threat quarterbacks in college football, amassing 527 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on 133 attempts while propelling Ole Miss to the College Football Playoff. However, through seven games this year, he has managed only 134 rushing yards on 41 carries. While he still has six rushing touchdowns, the explosive gains that defined his game have been largely absent.
According to offensive coordinator Pete Golding, this reduction in rushing attempts might be intentional. Part of the explanation lies in Chambliss's natural growth as a passer. As he has developed, Ole Miss has encouraged him to remain in the pocket longer, work through his progressions, and trust his arm. "I think part of developing as a quarterback and as a passer is making sure I'm going through the progressions and things as well," Golding said on Monday. "Also, I think after having the year that he had, there's different plans in place for him this year and how to control him in the pocket and how to have a spy for him."
Defenses also deserve credit for adapting. After Chambliss's breakout season, every defensive coordinator on Ole Miss's schedule spent the offseason devising ways to contain him. Spies are now common, running lanes close faster, and defenses prefer to force him to win from the pocket rather than allow him to turn broken plays into big gains. Still, Golding's comments suggested he wouldn't mind seeing his quarterback rely on his instincts more often. "I think there's some times where, all right, it's not there. Man, let's go be an athlete as well," Golding said. "So that's been talked about. I think there were some opportunities within that game, especially late, where we're getting some two-man and all those. And there's a spy, but I mean, you can outrun him."
That remark came less than 48 hours after Ole Miss's loss to Texas, in which Chambliss finished with just seven net rushing yards on five attempts and completed 25 of 52 passes for 250 yards, two touchdowns, and three interceptions. Golding noted communication issues in the passing game and credited Texas for consistently getting its hands into throwing lanes. "A lot of them were just not on the same page," Golding said. "Some of them were tipped balls, although they did a really good job. They had eight knockdown balls that I think could have been some explosive plays."
This raises an obvious question: if defenses are taking away throwing windows and the passing game isn't operating smoothly, why not lean more on what made Chambliss special in the first place? Last season, some of his best plays came when the pocket collapsed. "There were a lot of times that the first three weren't there last year, I'm gone, which is something that makes him who he is," Golding said. "And so I think you'll see a little more of that moving forward."
Key Analysis
The timing of this potential shift is critical. Leading rusher Kewan Lacy has already been ruled out for Saturday's game against Auburn with a shoulder injury, meaning Ole Miss will need to find rushing production from other sources. Makhi Frazier is likely to see a larger workload, while JT Lindsey, Joshua Dye, and Shekai Mills-Knight could also get more opportunities. But Golding may have hinted at another solution on Monday. The Rebels have spent much of this season encouraging Chambliss to become a more complete quarterback. Against Auburn, they may need him to revert to the quarterback he was last year.
Originally reported by hottytoddy.