The University of Mississippi Athletics
Football vs. LSU: Practice Report
9/24/2025 | Football
Presented by Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center
OXFORD, Miss. – The No. 11 Ole Miss football team, coming off a commanding win against Tulane to improve to 4-0 on the season, will meet its biggest challenge yet against its annual Magnolia Bowl rivals, the No. 4 LSU Tigers (4-0).
Head coach Lane Kiffin held his weekly press conference Monday to preview Saturday’s 2:30 p.m. CT battle with LSU. De’Zhuan Stribling, Kewan Lacy and Will Echoles each met with the media as well, which can be found in this week’s practice report, presented by Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center.
Bayou Blockade
LSU’s defense has started the season on a high note, holding reigning ACC champion Clemson and SEC rival Florida to just 10 points each. The Tigers have strengthened their roster through the transfer portal in recent years, particularly on defense, under fourth year head coach Brian Kelly and second year defensive coordinator Blake Baker. Kiffin credited both system experience and personnel upgrades.
“I think being in the second year in a defensive system helps and they’ve improved their personnel also. Three of the four starting defensive linemen are portal guys, along with three of the four starters in the secondary… They are coaching great and playing great.”
The Ole Miss–LSU rivalry dates to 1895, with uninterrupted annual games since 1945. The last game in Oxford was a thrilling 55-49 victory for the Rebels, while the 2024 matchup in Baton Rouge ended in an overtime heartbreak.
“This'll be easily the biggest test yet for our guys,” Kiffin said.
High-Octane Rebs
The Ole Miss offense has been flying high in recent weeks. After a slow start at Kroger Field against Kentucky, the Rebels have been putting the pieces together to revive Kiffin's fast-paced, high-powered offense. A key factor in the turnaround has been the offensive line’s consistency.
Discussing last week’s performance against Tulane, Kiffin said, “I thought they played well and played consistently. We didn’t have a lot of negative plays, which was good, so we avoided third and longs and it ultimately paid off.”
The skill positions have also been strong, even if individual stats aren’t always flashy. Stribling, a transfer wide receiver from Oklahoma State, had only three catches against Tulane, but was able to turn it into 62 yards of positive offense for the Rebels. He credits a team-oriented mindset and a desire to help the team succeed.
“We all have one common goal, and that is to go 1-0 every week,” Stribling said. “You still have a job out there whether or not you’re getting touches.”
Through four games, Ole Miss has six players with more than seven receptions, including Stribling and its starting running back, Lacy. Lacy, the former Missouri Tiger, has rushed for 358 yards and scored seven touchdowns while contributing as a receiver.
“I’ll go out there and do my job,” Lacy said. “It gives me motivation that this coaching staff thinks I can do it, and I’ll go out there and do it.”
The Rebels’ offense will need to be firing on all cylinders Saturday against LSU’s loaded defense.
Rebel Retaliation
In addition to their star-studded defense, the Tigers return key members of their offense, including QB Garrett Nussmeier. The Rebel’s defense has faced Nussmeier once before in the 2024 edition of the rivalry. He made numerous crucial plays late in the fourth quarter and threw the winning pass on the first play of overtime to break Ole Miss’ hearts in a game LSU didn’t lead until the final whistle.
“He (Nussmeier) does a great job of getting out of trouble with really quick feet, moving around and he saved the game last year.” Kiffin said. He later referred to the star QB as a “very savvy player.”
Ole Miss will be returning numerous players from last year's team that experienced the devastating loss to the Tigers.
“You just got that feeling in your gut from last year on how the game ended so use that as motivation,” Echoles said.
Fueled by last year’s heartbreak and armed with a high-powered offense, the Rebels are ready to take on LSU and make their mark on the Magnolia Bowl once again.
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