A late touchdown connection from Trinidad Chambliss to senior tight end Dae’Quan Wright gave No. 4 Ole Miss a 10-7 halftime lead over Washington State on Saturday.
The Rebels sleepwalked their way through the opening 30 minutes, but it was a 2-yard touchdown pass from Chambliss — who’s gone from backup quarterback to Heisman Trophy contender — with 31 seconds left in an otherwise forgettable first half that put them on top.
Sure, it was an early afternoon start, with Ole Miss coming off a bye week and facing a nonconference opponent it has 0 rivalry with. So all the ingredients were there for a slow start for the Rebels, and that slow start happened.
However, Chambliss again injected life into the Rebels’ cause with his first touchdown pass that gave Ole Miss its first lead of the game:
Chambliss completed 16 of his 21 passes for 143 yards with that touchdown in the first half, and he didn’t throw an interception. Meanwhile, Wright had 3 catches for 38 yards before halftime, and that touchdown grab was huge in giving Ole Miss something to lean on in the locker room. All 3 of Wright’s catches came on that touchdown drive.
Suddenly, the momentum was on the Rebels’ side as they went into halftime after battling uphill for most of the first 30 minutes.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
