Lane Kiffin reveals latest on the Ole Miss quarterback situation heading into game versus Tulane
The head coach for the Rebels wasted little time to give folks an update on what could turn into an in-season quarterback battle.
On Monday, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin updated the status of quarterback Austin Simmons. The redshirt sophomore from Pahokee (Fla.) injured his left ankle in the win over Kentucky. Fast forward a week to the Arkansas game and Simmons was listed as a game-time decision.
Ultimately, Ole Miss started Division II transfer Trinidad Chambliss and all he did was throw for 353 yards and a touchdown while also running for 64 yards and two more scores. Simmons came in when Chambliss injured his thumb and engineered a touchdown drive in the red zone as well.
Now, Kiffin is saying Simmons might be back in time for this weekend’s game versus Tulane.
My two eyes see an unhealthy, injured Austin Simmons.
It was evident on television and several folks who were on the sidelines Saturday told me it was very easy to see Simmons was in a lot of pain. After throwing the touchdown to Harrison Wallace III he reportedly limped to the sidelines and collapsed in pain – waiting on the trainers to tend to him.
Ankle sprains, hip flexors take time to heal. And playing in an SEC game is absolutely going to delay the recovery. And, it certainly complicates things when Chambliss goes out and does what he did. Naturally fans are going to want to see more and I don’t necessarily think they’re wrong.
I don’t believe Simmons is 100 percent and I don’t think he can get there by Saturday. In my opinion, this is just some gamesmanship from Kiffin and forcing Tulane to prepare for both quarterbacks.
Ole Miss Rebels News
Lane Kiffin compares Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss to one-time Super Bowl champion
The two comps the Rebels head coach tossed out are quite interesting.
247Sports’ Chase Parham put together some interesting tidbits on Trinidad Chambliss’ performance.
“Arkansas got pressure on Chambliss during 33 percent of his 33 dropbacks,” Parham said. “He scrambled three times, took one sack, and threw seven passes.
“On those seven passes, Chambliss completed six of them for 97 yards. The other pass was a wide receiver drop, giving him a perfect adjusted completion percentage under pressure,” Parham said. “His mobility wasn’t just a weapon in the run game. It extended plays and allowed the passing game to stay on target. Chambliss, with a clean pocket, was 15-for-22 for 256 yards and a score.
“Ole Miss ran play-action on 57 percent of the dropbacks, and Chambliss didn’t have any variance in the time he held the ball depending on play type,” Parham said. “He averaged 2.68 seconds in the pocket per pass on the night. With no play-action, he was 11-for-16 for 228 yards and a 10-yard average depth per throw.”
Lane Kiffin was impressed with Trinidad Chambliss’ performance Saturday.
“The TV copy plays on the TVs here the next day, always. So I think just kind of walking by that and even though I’m down there with him, just seeing how composed he was and how confident he looked,” Kiffin said. “Like, you’re watching it on TV, I thought I’d be like, ‘Man, this guy’s a veteran starter here in the SEC.’ Just thought he was really composed in the moment and he played like that, too.”
If I’m the head coach for Ole Miss, I am playing Chambliss. No question. For one, you need to let Austin Simmons heal. I’d much rather have him at 100 percent for LSU next week than at 65-70 percent versus Tulane.
Also, Chambliss was great on Saturday. The team responded to his play. He has a lot of juice literally and figuratively. His legs make things problematic for defenses, and he has a pretty live arm. Roll with him until he gives you pause. Kiffin won 12 games in 2014 with Blake Sims as his quarterback. He mentioned Sunday Chambliss reminds him of his former signal caller at Alabama. I’d stick with it and see what you can get out of a guy who is surely as good as Sims and might better.
