How LSU Erased a 17-Point Deficit at Ole Miss — and Still Lost
LSU spent the first half digging a hole and most of the second half proving it could climb out of it. That is what makes the 32-24 loss at Ole Miss sting: the Tigers did the hardest part, erased the emotional and scoreboard damage, and then failed at the exact moment the game became theirs to finish.
Quick Answer
LSU trailed Ole Miss 17-0 in the second quarter and 24-7 at halftime before scoring 17 unanswered points to tie the game at 24. A Jakeem Jackson interception, a Sam Leavitt rushing touchdown, a 26-yard touchdown pass to Weston Watkins and a Scott Starzyk field goal fueled the rally. Ole Miss then answered with a 75-yard drive, and LSU’s final goal-line possession ended in an interception.
The first half created almost no margin for error
The comeback only became necessary because LSU allowed Ole Miss to control the first half. Trinidad Chambliss repeatedly extended plays and the Rebels produced touchdown drives of 78, 92 and 75 yards. The last was the most damaging: Ole Miss went the length of the field in under two minutes and scored with 10 seconds left before halftime.
That sequence turned a manageable 17-7 deficit into 24-7. It forced LSU to spend the second half playing nearly perfect football.
Jakeem Jackson changed the energy
LSU finally created the kind of disruptive play it needed when Jakeem Jackson intercepted Chambliss and returned the ball to the Ole Miss 33. Six plays later, Leavitt scored on a 4-yard keeper. The Tigers had cut the margin to 10 and, for the first time, forced Ole Miss to feel the pressure of protecting a lead.
Leavitt and Weston Watkins made it a game
After an Ole Miss field-goal miss, LSU drove 64 yards in seven plays. Leavitt hit Weston Watkins for a 26-yard touchdown down the right side, and suddenly a game that had looked one-sided was 24-21.
A fourth-quarter field goal tied it at 24. LSU had scored 17 straight. Momentum, confidence and the emotional weight of the night had all shifted.
The drive LSU’s defense could not surrender
The problem was what came next. Ole Miss answered with 13 plays, 75 yards and more than five minutes off the clock. Chambliss finished the possession himself with a 14-yard touchdown run. The two-point conversion pushed the lead to 32-24.
For LSU, that drive is the clearest lesson from the loss. The Tigers had done the work to get back even, but they could not produce the championship-level stop the moment demanded.
Seven shots near the goal line — no touchdown
LSU still had one more opportunity and reached the Ole Miss 6. The Tigers could not finish. On fourth down, Leavitt’s pass was tipped and intercepted in the end zone by Jaylon Braxton.
The comeback showed resilience. The ending showed the distance LSU still has to close. Against SEC opponents, fighting back into the game is not enough; the final possession and final defensive stand have to look different.
Read the full LSU–Ole Miss 32-24 game recap.
Track the bigger picture in the 2026 LSU season tracker.
Next up: LSU vs. Texas A&M in Tiger Stadium.
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