If there was ever a time to be an Ole Miss sports fan, it is now.
In 2025-26, the Rebel football team advanced to the semifinals of the College Football Playoff — the best finish in program history. Both basketball teams are coming off Sweet Sixteen appearances; various other Ole Miss programs have broken records over the past few seasons.
With the help of Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Sports Keith Carter and NIL funds flowing in from fans and sponsors, the Rebels are in a great position for this season and the future.
“Coach (Chris) Beard and coach Yo (Yolett McPhee-McCuin), they just went to the Sweet 16. They want to go to the Elite Eight and the Final Four,” Carter said in an interview with The Daily Mississippian. “We have those lofty goals. So, I think the key is setting goals, trying to achieve those, and when you do move to the next goal, keep setting the bar even higher.”
With so many Ole Miss teams peaking at the same time, it is important to recognize the assistance of NIL. Launched in 2022, the Grove Collective has had an amazing impact on Ole Miss sports by generating revenue for NIL deals. It has been widely recognized as a top collective for recruiting prime athletes from all over the country.
Ole Miss Athletics thrived in the NIL era. Now, after the House vs. NCAA settlement, which allows university athletic departments to pay athletes up to $20.5 million, Ole Miss will have to adapt again.
“We’re eager to see what this model looks like, and then we’re going to do everything we can do within the rules to continue to elevate the Ole Miss program,” Carter said. “And I think that’s exactly what we’ve done here.”
While the implications of the settlement are still being sorted out, it is a good time to take a closer look at where several Ole Miss sports currently stand and to consider the question: Are we living in the golden age of Ole Miss sports?
Football
The 2025-26 season was, undoubtedly, the greatest in program history. The Rebels finished 11-1 in the regular season and advanced to the College Football Playoff for the first time. They beat No. 11 Tulane 41-10 to advance to the quarterfinals at the Sugar Bowl, where they beat No. 3 Georgia 39-34.
Though they lost to No. 10 Miami in the CFP semifinal game played in the Fiesta Bowl 31-27, the Rebels finished with a program-high 13 wins.
Despite this team’s success, next season will likely be a more accurate predictor of how the Rebels will perform in the foreseeable future. It will be the team’s first season since 2019 without head coach Lane Kiffin, who left Ole Miss for LSU at the end of the regular season.
Though many fans have negative opinions about Kiffin due to the manner of his departure, he is undeniably a good recruiter and coach. He transformed the Ole Miss program from a low-to-middle tier SEC team to a perennial eight-win (or more) finisher.
There seemed to be no dropoff on the field, in recruiting or in the transfer portal when former defensive coordinator Pete Golding took the reins as head coach for the playoffs. With two new coordinators — John David Baker on offense and Patrick Toney on defense — as well as a plethora of new position coaches, the Ole Miss staff will look very different next season.
It seems like a good sign that even before the season ended, numerous key players announced their intent to return to Ole Miss next season, a list which includes running back Kewan Lacy and outside linebacker Suntarine Perkins.
Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss also hopes to return for a sixth year of college football. Ole Miss filed an appeal against the NCAA so Chambliss can have one more year of eligibility.
Golding and his staff have also done an excellent job with recruiting, specifically in the transfer portal, in their first few months. The Rebels currently have the No. 2 portal class in the nation thanks to commitments from players including Auburn corner Jay Crawford, the No. 2 defensive back in the portal, and LSU offensive lineman Carius Curne.
The Rebels landed former five-star quarterback Deuce Knight, who played in only two games for Auburn this past season as a true freshman.
Ole Miss also brought in the No. 22 high school recruiting class this year days after Kiffin’s departure. Overall, Ole Miss has the No. 13 incoming class — a combination of high school recruits and transfers.
Men’s Basketball
Last season, this program looked to have found its stride. In only his second season as head coach, Beard led a stingy Rebel team to a Sweet 16 berth for the first time since 2001. The No. 6 seed Rebels lost 73-70 to Tom Izzo’s No. 2 Michigan State, which was by no means a shameful defeat. Izzo’s program has long been recognized as one of the best in the country.
This year, the team has taken a step back. The Rebels finished nonconference play 8-5. They lost games to postseason-hopeful teams such as Miami, NC State and St. John’s. While none of these losses are inexcusable, the postseason selection committee does not award teams for close losses.
Yet after two losses in conference play, the Rebels are beginning to find their stride. They have won three straight SEC games and currently sit at No. 3 in the conference. With upcoming matchups against unranked Auburn and Kentucky, the Rebels could very feasibly extend their win streak to five.
The Rebels have the talent to keep winning. The roster is potentially more skilled than it was last year.
Guard Ilias Kamardine played professionally in France before coming to Ole Miss. Guard AJ Storr averaged 16.8 points per game at Wisconsin two seasons ago and is a potential second round pick in the NBA, per NBA Draft Room. Forward Malik Dia, one of the few returners, averaged double figures last season, and Beard said at SEC Media Day a few months ago that he believes Dia can play in the NBA.
Women’s Basketball
The No. 16 Lady Rebels are as strong as ever. Ole Miss is 16-4 and 3-2 in conference play.
Ohio State transfer guard/forward Cotie McMahon is averaging 18.7 points per game, and forward Christeen Iwuala, averaging 14.2 points, has taken a big step up from last season, when she averaged only 6.8 points. After the Lady Rebels’ victory over Wisconsin in the Coast 2 Classic in November, the forwards became the first pair of players on the same team to finish in double figures in the first six games in the 21st century.
The Lady Rebels have wins over then-No. 18 Notre Dame and then-No. 5 Okalohoma on the road.
This team is just one more in a long sequence of elite squads in recent years. Much of the program’s success is owed to coach McPhee-McCuin. She took over the team in 2018, and after a few bumpy seasons, her Lady Rebels have reached the NCAA Tournament in four consecutive seasons.
In 2022-23, the Lady Rebels advanced to the Sweet Sixteen after a 54-49 victory over No. 1 seed Stanford.
The Lady Rebels finished third in the SEC with a 12-4 conference record and won a postseason game against No. 10 seed Marquette during the 2023-24 season. This past season, Ole Miss finished with a 10-6 SEC record and earned a No. 5 seed in the postseason.
McPhee-McCuin has led Ole Miss to five NCAA Tournament wins, with a total postseason record of 5–5. This season, her team will once again look to make noise in the postseason.
Baseball
Mike Bianco took over as Ole Miss Baseball’s head coach in 2001; his overall record with the Rebels is 906-543. In 2014, his Rebels advanced to the College World Series for the first time in 42 years.
In 2022, Vanderbilt bounced the Rebels in the first round of the SEC Tournament, but Ole Miss managed to sneak into the NCAA tournament as the last team in the field. From there, the Rebels caught fire; they went undefeated in the regional and super regional and lost only one game in the College World Series in Omaha, Neb., returning to Oxford as NCAA national champions.
Since then, the journey has not been smooth. In 2023, the Rebels ended the season with a six-game losing streak to finish 25-29. In 2024, the Rebels were 27-29, once again failing to qualify for the postseason.
Last season was a breath of fresh air and a return to form for Bianco’s program. The Rebels finished 43-21 (16-14 in the SEC). As the No. 7 seed in the SEC Tournament, Ole Miss beat three teams on the path to the conference championship, where they lost 3-2 against No. 4 seed Vanderbilt.
Thanks to this run, Ole Miss hosted a regional tournament. Unfortunately, they fell just short of the super regional, losing 12-11 to Murray State.
Pitcher Hunter Elliott and catcher Austin Fawley are both returning to Oxford, and a handful of transfer portal additions will fill some holes in the roster for 2026. Last season was a step back in the right direction.
Softball
The Ole Miss Softball team had major success in the 2025 season. The Rebels, under head coach Jamie Trachsel, went 42-21 and made it to their first Women’s College World Series.
The Rebels finished No. 8 in the final poll, the highest ranking in Ole Miss softball history. They have qualified for the NCAA Tournament nine times in the past 10 seasons.
The Rebels’ offense was among the best in the country. Lexie Brady hit 17 home runs, an Ole Miss single-season record, and added 51 RBIs. Aliyah Binford recorded 55 RBIs and 12 home runs of her own, and Persy Llamas had 55 RBIs and 10 home runs. Overall, the Rebels notched 67 home runs — a program season record — and had a team batting average of .302.
Ole Miss entered the SEC Tournament as the No. 11 seed. Thanks to a solid run, the Rebels got the nod for the NCAA Tournament. They won the Tucson Regional and then played No. 4 Arkansas in the super regional. Ole Miss defeated the Razorbacks in three games.
The Rebels ran out of gas in the World Series, though. They lost to No. 12 Texas Tech 1-0 and were knocked out after a 6-5 loss against No. 16 Oregon. Still, it was a season to remember.
In the portal, Coach Trachsel landed commitments from two-way standout Hope Jenkins, DII National Player of the Year Emilee Boyer and base-stealing phenom Cassidy Patterson, among others.
Golf
Ole Miss Men’s Golf enjoyed a standout season in 2024, led by junior Michael La Sasso, who won the 2025 NCAA individual championship. The Rebels finished just short of the national championship, losing to Oklahoma State in the semifinals. They were ranked No. 4 in the country.
Coach Chris Malloy, who has been at the helm of Ole Miss Men’s Golf for 12 years, had his best season yet. Golfweek named Malloy, a former Rebel golf athlete, last season’s National Coach of the Year.
The Rebels finished fall 2025 ranked No. 10 in the country. They won The Invitational at The Honors Course in Ooltewah, Tenn., on Sept. 15-16.
On the women’s side, the now graduated Caitlyn Macnab was perhaps the greatest women’s golfer to ever suit up for Ole Miss. She played the past two seasons with the Rebels and was a Women’s Golf Coaches’ Association All-American all four seasons of her collegiate career. Last season, she was the individual winner of the Women’s Golf SEC Tournament, the only Ole Miss women’s golfer to achieve this feat.
Women’s golf finished the 2024-2025 season ranked No. 16 in the country with an overall record of 117-59-3. This finish was one spot higher than 2023-2024, when the Rebels were 112-75-0.
In fall 2025, the Rebels finished in the Top 5 in every tournament they competed in. Women’s golf is ranked No. 15 in the country and, like the men’s team, will hope to make some noise in the spring half of the 2025-26 season.
Rifle
2025 was an outstanding year for Ole Miss Rifle, as well. The team finished the season ranked No. 4 in the nation; they were led by freshman Audrey Gogniat, the first individual NCAA champion in Ole Miss Rifle history.
Coach Rachel Martin resigned this offseason after her second year as head coach, but new head coach Will Shaner has helped the team continue to perform well. This season, the Rebels continue to perform well. They are 6-2 and ranked No. 7 in the country. Most recently, sophomore Gracie Dinh shot a perfect 600 in air rifle against Murray State on Jan. 10.
This squad looks primed to make a stab for the national title.
