The center of the college football universe was in Mississippi this weekend. Ole Miss defeated their arch nemesis Lane Kiffin, 32-24, on Saturday. They also defeated LSU. Trinidad Chambliss delivered a Heisman-worthy performance as well. But did the weekend’s most satisfying victory also produce college football’s biggest winner?
Checking in with the Rebels’ other rivals, Mississippi State quarterback Kamario Taylor continued his spectacular start, while several other players across college football made statements that will resonate well beyond Week 3. Let’s get into the biggest winners.
Trinidad Chambliss, QB, Ole Miss Rebels
Chambliss has gone from a quarterback at Ferris State to a breakout in 2025, and now, he is the best player in the country and the Heisman Trophy favorite. This has been a meteoric rise for Chambliss, who was brought to Ole Miss by Lane Kiffin and remained behind when Kiffin left for LSU. Knowing his best place was Ole Miss and new coach Pete Golding.
In the biggest game of the season for either of these teams, LSU quarterback Sam Leavitt took time to settle himself down, while at the same time, Chambliss was leading the Rebels to a giant lead.
Chambliss, who was determined to win this matchup, finished with 363 passing yards, 2 touchdowns passing and ran in for the game-winning TD. He was the reason Ole Miss was able to win after running back Kewan Lacy again went out with an ankle injury. If the season ends now, Chambliss is the clear Heisman Trophy winner. If Lacy misses time and Chambliss is forced to do even more, he will only distance himself from any competition.Â
Kamario Taylor, QB, Mississippi State Bulldogs
Holy talent, Super Mario! Taylor has come out vigorously in 2026 for the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Through three games, Taylor has 832 yards passing with 11 touchdowns and one interception on 56-of-82 attempts. The 230-pound quarterback, who runs like a wide receiver, also has 27 rush attempts for 178 yards and an additional rushing touchdown for the Bulldogs, who are ranked in the AP Poll after starting the season 3-0. This start, surprising to some, has seen the Bulldogs go to Minnesota and defeat the Golden Gophers 38-13 before beating South Carolina 31-24 after falling behind in the first half. In the comeback win, Taylor threw for 251 yards with 4 touchdown passes and one interception. Showing his arm is just as dangerous as his legs.
Taylor, a sophomore from Macon, Miss., who wanted to only play for the Bulldogs, has the biggest arm in the entire country. Reminding some of former Tennessee quarterback Joe Milton, but with accuracy. If cross state Chambliss is the best QB in the country for 2026, Taylor may just be that player in 2027.
Will Echoles, DT, Ole Miss RebelsÂ
Echoles came into the game against LSU as one of the top defensive linemen in the nation and a first-round projected player in the 2027 NFL draft. After dominating the LSU offensive line for four quarters in this game, he only helped himself get closer to any linemen who rank above him.
Echoles helped the Rebels defense hold LSU down for much of the game. He finished with 4 solo tackles and one assist, while also getting to Sam Leavitt for a sack of the talented rushing QB. Echoles had plenty to celebrate after the Rebels’ win, especially after playing a major role in holding an LSU offense that scored 51 and 45 points in its first two games to just 24.
Lincoln Kienholz, QB, Louisville Cardinals
This was an extremely important game for the Louisville Cardinals, as it was their last chance to defeat a ranked opponent with an easy remaining schedule. We saw what Kienholz could do in the Cardinals' close loss to Ole Miss. But he was able to get a 41-31 win this time over SMU on Saturday. For his part, Kienholz threw for 177 yards and 2 touchdowns while also rushing for 42 yards and another touchdown on the ground.
After sitting at Ohio State, Kienholz competed for the job against Julian Sayin in 2025 before losing out. His time at Ohio State was not a failure though. as he was able to learn from some of the best staff members in the country, including coach Ryan Day.
At Louisville, he learns under another great coach of the position with Jeff Brohm, and he will do so as the starter for this season. Kienholz, who came to Ohio State from small South Dakota school, has something that many did not see. But Day and Brohm both did, and now he will be a top QB in the ACC and the country for the next two years.Â
Florida Gators
I know Ole Miss won the biggest game of the weekend. But both of those teams were also meant to come into the game undefeated, and they played their part. For Florida, it was an entirely different range of outcomes in the Gators first season under new coach Jon Sumrall.Â
The best thing Sumrall did was to bring Buster Faulkner over as his offensive coordinator from Georgia Tech. Not only is Faulkner showing his talent in the SEC, but he also brought quarterback Aaron Philo with him to take over the offense that he spent last season learning as the backup with the Yellow Jackets.Â
So far this season, Philo has 721 yards, 6 touchdowns and 2 interceptions while playing sparingly through two weeks, as well as one full game against Auburn, when he finished the game with 15-of-22 passing for 204 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception.
The ability of Philo to run (18 carries for 55 yards and 2 touchdowns on the season) has also allowed Jadan Baugh to become the best running back in the country. After an All-SEC season in 2025, when Baugh finished with 1,170 yards and 8 touchdowns on 220 carries. This followed a freshman season in 2024 when he finished with 673 yards and 7 touchdowns on just 133 carries.
This season, Baugh is out to a magnificent start with 54 carries for 458 yards and 8 touchdowns. This includes Saturday, when his 26 carries, 162 yards and 3 touchdowns helped to defeat Auburn. Although he only has one catch this season for 6 yards, he is rushing for 8.5 yards per carry and his production on the ground more than makes up for his lack of receiving ability.
Giving up 34 points to Auburn is not good. Especially with Ole Miss coming to The Swamp this week with Chambliss at the helm. But, if the Gators can get the defense close to the level of the offense, they will finish the season ranked and be off to a great start heading into the second season under Sumrall in 2027 — with a chance to compete for a CFP.
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