Kewan Lacy rushed for 138 yards and had one of Ole Miss’ three rushing touchdowns as the No. 20 Rebels held off Kentucky 30-23 in both teams’ SEC opener Saturday in Lexington, Kentucky.
Damien Taylor and Austin Simmons, who passed for 235 yards but was intercepted twice before leaving midway through the fourth quarter with an ankle injury, had the other rushing touchdowns for Ole Miss (2-0).
Seth McGowan rushed for 93 yards and had both touchdowns for the Wildcats (1-1), but Zach Calzada passed for just 149 yards before leaving in the fourth quarter because of a shoulder injury.
Lucas Carneiro’s 28-yard field goal midway through the third quarter increased Ole Miss’ lead to 20-13, but on the ensuing possession, McGowan ran 8 yards for a tying touchdown.
Simmons answered with a 7-yard touchdown run that gave the Rebels a 27-20 lead at the end of the third quarter.
Kentucky reached the Ole Miss 20 before turning the ball over on downs midway through the fourth quarter. Cutter Boley replaced Calzada and moved the Wildcats to the Rebels’ 26 but was sacked on fourth-and-7 with 4:11 remaining.
Carneiro kicked a 36-yard field goal for a 10-point lead before Kentucky’s Jacob Kauwe kicked a 39-yarder with eight seconds remaining.
Ty Bryant intercepted Simmons late in the first quarter, giving the Wildcats the ball at the Ole Miss 32. McGowan eventually ran 9 yards for a touchdown to give Kentucky a 7-0 lead.
Wallace was intercepted again by Bryant as the Wildcats took over at the Rebels’ 32, and the 7-0 lead held through the end of the first quarter.
On the second play of the second quarter, Kauwe kicked a 33-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead.
Simmons’ 55-yard completion to Harrison Wallace III, who finished with 117 receiving yards, on 4th-and-1 set up Lacy’s 1-yard touchdown run to trim the lead to 10-7.
The Rebels took a 14-10 lead on their next possession thanks to Taylor’s 1-yard touchdown run. Kauwe’s 31-yard field goal and Carneiro’s 43-yarder left Ole Miss with a 17-13 halftime lead.
