By JOHN MARSHALL

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Miami’s Carson Beck is the prototypical power-program quarterback, a former four-star prospect with a massive NIL portfolio who knows what it’s like to play on the big stage.

Mississippi’s Trinidad Chambliss nearly gave up football, won a Division II national championship and has shined since being unexpectedly thrust into the spotlight.

Their paths will converge in the desert at Thursday’s Fiesta Bowl, with a spot in the national championship game on the line.

“Only four teams have the opportunity to go play this week,” Beck said. “I’m super grateful for that.”

Beck has been building toward this since starring as a high schooler in Jacksonville, Florida.

The 6-foot-4, 225-pound pro-style passer won a national championship in 2022 — the Bulldogs’ second straight — as a backup to Stetson Bennett IV, learning as he went. Beck took those lessons onto the field, throwing for more than 7,000 yards and 52 touchdowns in the next two seasons while leading Georgia to 24 wins.

A knee injury kept Beck out of the Bulldogs’ College Football Playoff loss against Notre Dame in early 2025 and, after initially declaring for the NFL draft, he opted to transfer to Miami, a school with a potent offense and plenty of NIL cash to throw around.

He’s been a perfect fit.

Poised and steady, Beck has thrown for 3,313 yards and 27 touchdowns on 74% passing with 10 interceptions. He led the Hurricanes (12-2, CFP No. 10 seed) to wins over Texas A&M and Ohio State in the playoffs and is 36-5 as a starter as he winds down his college career.

“He’s very experienced, he’s been successful everywhere he’s been,” Ole Miss coach Pete Golding said. “He’s always had his teams competing at a championship level and being in the playoffs.”

Chambliss’ career took a different trajectory.

With no Division I offers out of high school, the quarterback from Grand Rapids, Michigan, opted to play at Ferris State, where he redshirted the first two seasons — the second due to respiratory issues. He considered transferring to a Division III school to give college basketball a try, but chose to give football one more shot.

Good decision.

Chambliss led the Bulldogs to the Division II national championship in 2024, leading to offers from numerous Division I programs. He chose to play at Ole Miss, figuring he would be a backup but at least have the DI experience.

Chambliss’ fate changed when starter Austin Simmons went down with an ankle injury during the second game of the season. Chambliss took off and kept going, throwing for 353 yards against Arkansas in his first start and playing so well he kept the starting job once Simmons was healthy.

The dual-threat quarterback put pressure on defenses all season, rocketing passes into tight windows with his strong arm while extending plays with his legs.

Chambliss has thrown for 3,660 yards and 21 touchdowns with just three interceptions on 66% passing, adding 520 yards and eight more scores rushing. He led the Rebels (13-1, CFP No. 6 seed) to a win over Tulane in the CFP opening round and picked apart Georgia in the quarterfinals with 362 yards and two touchdowns in a 39-34 win.

“He’s a limitless football player,” Miami coach Mario Cristobal said. “Certainly, you could see on the sideline and watching some of the stuff on TV, his leadership skills and the way people gravitate to him. He’s had a tremendous impact on the program and plenty of respect for him.”

So has Beck, setting up a showdown in the desert.

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Trinidad Chambliss is set to return to Ole Miss next year pending an eligibility waiver, but there was a chance he was going to follow Lane Kiffin. Or, so it seemed.

Kiffin left Ole Miss and Chambliss prior to the College Football Playoff for LSU and people started connecting the dots. If Chambliss was able to return to college football in 2026, the Tigers would be a logical landing spot considering he’d reunite with Kiffin and likely command a sizable NIL deal.

But, Chambliss put those rumors to bed on Monday when he joined SportsCenter. Plus, he’s focused on Miami in the College Football Playoff semifinals.

“I mean, I guess, but not really,” Chambliss said. “I mean, I knew that was right. And you know, I always had trust in, you know PG, and you know Coach Judge. And you know I gotta give thanks to coach Kiffin, coach Weiss as well for giving the opportunity to play that Ole Miss. But I know, I knew that this was the right choice.”

Chambliss opted to stay with Ole Miss as long as his waiver for a sixth year is granted. But speaking with ESPN host Matt Barrie, he was again asked if LSU specifically was a possibility.

“Like I said, like I guess so,” Chambliss said if LSU was a possibility. “But you know, at the end of the day, I just made the right decision, and that was, you know, to stick with my gut. And you know, Ole Miss has been good to me, and I feel like I owe it to Ole Miss. And you know, I just love it here, and I love the community, so that was, you know, the right choice.”

In total, Chambliss has completed 66.4% of his pass attempts for 3,660 yards and 21 TDs this season, while only throwing three interceptions. Though Chambliss spent four seasons at Ferris State, he only played in two of them.

He redshirted in 2021 after seeing no action. He didn’t make any appearances in the 2022 campaign, either. Chambliss is seeking a medical redshirt for that season, claiming he battled respiratory issues, which ultimately led to the removal of his tonsils.

“I deserve it,” Chambliss said Dec. 30 at Sugar Bowl media day. “I’ve only played three seasons of college football. I feel like I deserve to play four. I redshirted in 2021. That was my freshman redshirt. Then I medically redshirted in 2022. Played in 2023, 2024 and this is 2025.

“… I have records from an ear, nose and throat doctor that I was getting treated for the issue that I had in 2022. … I was in communication with Ferris (State), doctors, all of that.”

Superstar quarterback Trinidad Chambliss has signed an Name, Image and Likeness deal to stay at Ole Miss that is if the NCAA will allow him another season.

Yes, yes, verily verily I say unto you as much as the NCAA shouldn’t continue to be a part of the Rebels’ future success it somehow always creeps back up again. There is a history here dating back to the days of Jerrell Powe where the NCAA dragged its feet on a decision only to stymie Ole Miss. Those long held memories and grudges from recruiting violations and investigations from the Hugh Freeze and Houston Nutt eras were an albatross for years in Oxford as well.

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While the media and sources can say whatever positivity there is, the Cup is in the camp of “we’ll believe it when we see it.”

Chambliss is seeking a waiver for a medical redshirt from one of his seasons at Ferris State and is now under the legal counsel of Tom Mars (a name any long time Ole Miss fan will know). A sixth year of eligibility is not unheard of, and a denial of the waiver from the NCAA could open a can of worms into a lawsuit much like the efforts of Diego Pavia at Vanderbilt this past season.

The commitment of Chambliss to Ole Miss and from the Rebels to its starting QB is the first step or domino to fall, however. He is not ready to jump on the first train to Baton Rouge after the season ends giving the fanbase at least some assurance he could be in red and blue in 2026.

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Chambliss came into the starting job after an injury to Austin Simmons who has announced his intentions to transfer. The senior from Grand Rapids, Mich. immediately provided a spark offensively and held onto the starting job for the rest of the season guiding Ole Miss to its first ever College Football Playoff berth. Then, as everyone in the country has seen, Chambliss won back to back playoff games to get Ole Miss in the national semi-final against Miami this week.

His 3,660 passing yards, 520 rushing yards and 29 combined touchdowns were good enough to get him to eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting. A return would easily put him among the favorites in 2026 after the incredible exposure of the CFP first round and quarterfinals.

Chambliss’ attorney is making the case on social media that dozens of pages of medical documents have been submitted to the NCAA to provide for future eligibility. Ole Miss can now do nothing but wait and hope.

Superstar quarterback Trinidad Chambliss has signed an Name, Image and Likeness deal to stay at Ole Miss that is if the NCAA will allow him another season.

Yes, yes, verily verily I say unto you as much as the NCAA shouldn’t continue to be a part of the Rebels’ future success it somehow always creeps back up again. There is a history here dating back to the days of Jerrell Powe where the NCAA dragged its feet on a decision only to stymie Ole Miss. Those long held memories and grudges from recruiting violations and investigations from the Hugh Freeze and Houston Nutt eras were an albatross for years in Oxford as well.

While the media and sources can say whatever positivity there is, the Cup is in the camp of “we’ll believe it when we see it.”

Chambliss is seeking a waiver for a medical redshirt from one of his seasons at Ferris State and is now under the legal counsel of Tom Mars (a name any long time Ole Miss fan will know). A sixth year of eligibility is not unheard of, and a denial of the waiver from the NCAA could open a can of worms into a lawsuit much like the efforts of Diego Pavia at Vanderbilt this past season.

The commitment of Chambliss to Ole Miss and from the Rebels to its starting QB is the first step or domino to fall, however. He is not ready to jump on the first train to Baton Rouge after the season ends giving the fanbase at least some assurance he could be in red and blue in 2026.

Chambliss came into the starting job after an injury to Austin Simmons who has announced his intentions to transfer. The senior from Grand Rapids, Mich. immediately provided a spark offensively and held onto the starting job for the rest of the season guiding Ole Miss to its first ever College Football Playoff berth. Then, as everyone in the country has seen, Chambliss won back to back playoff games to get Ole Miss in the national semi-final against Miami this week.

His 3,660 passing yards, 520 rushing yards and 29 combined touchdowns were good enough to get him to eighth in the Heisman Trophy voting. A return would easily put him among the favorites in 2026 after the incredible exposure of the CFP first round and quarterfinals.

Chambliss’ attorney is making the case on social media that dozens of pages of medical documents have been submitted to the NCAA to provide for future eligibility. Ole Miss can now do nothing but wait and hope.

Sith Lord Nick Saban is responsible for all of this — the four College Football Playoff teams, and their respective head coaches, left standing in this year’s postseason action.

Indiana’s Curt Cignetti, Oregon’s Dan Lanning, Miami’s Mario Cristobal and Ole Miss’ Pete Golding: Those are Saban’s former assistants at Alabama that became head coaches at Power 4 programs across the country. Those are men he recruited, developed and, as he often says, “left to go somewhere else” so that they could bring themselves closer to calling their mentor and boss a peer.

It’s not just that the 2025 CFP national champion will be a program that hasn’t worn the crown in at least 25 years (Miami) — or even once (Indiana, Oregon) — but also that none of their head coaches have either.

So it is with some glee, I’m sure, that Saban will watch one of these men lift the national title trophy and applaud them for winning their first. Leave it to me to remind that one apprentice who will ultimately clutch glory in a couple weeks: He’s got six to go before he even equals Sith Lord Saban (and Kirby Smart already has two).

[2025 College Football Playoff Odds: Lines, Spreads for Each CFP Semifinal Game]

Now, people of college football’s Galactic Empire, here are my latest CFP bracket predictions for the semifinal games:

CFP Predictions: Semifinals

Fiesta Bowl: No. 10 Miami vs. No. 6 Ole Miss (Thursday, 7:30 p.m. ET) 

Winner: Miami

(Photo by Michael Chang /Sports Illustrated/Getty Images)

Hurricanes coach Mario Cristobal has put together one of the most devastating defensive lines in the sport. That defensive line, led by edge rushers Rueben Bain Jr. and Akheem Mesidor, has faced some of the most talented signal-callers college football had to offer in 2025: from former South Florida quarterback Byrum Brown, to former Florida quarterback DJ Lagway to Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed. 

And the Canes’ defense beat them all.

Still, even Cristobal acknowledged during his first media availability ahead of the Fiesta Bowl that none of those quarterbacks bring the level of improvisation and outrageous acts of escape fit for Cirque Soleil that Ole Miss’ Trinidad Chambliss does.

“We’ve faced some really good [quarterbacks] throughout the course of the year, especially in the last couple of weeks,” Cristobal said. “Watching him on film, he’s on a different level.”

[College Football Playoff Predictions: Ole Miss Has Momentum Ahead of CFP Semis]

Chambliss is the hottest passer in the country, the former Division II hero who toppled one of college football’s mythic-like giants in the Georgia Bulldogs defense. He did it with a Herculean act of labor — 362 passing yards, two touchdowns and one awe-inspiring drive to lead Ole Miss in a comeback win to take the Rebels as close as they’ve ever been in the last 64 years to winning the national title.

“He can do it all. He has excelled in every aspect of the game. He certainly brings a ton of energy to their team. He’s a limitless football player.”

And I’m still picking Miami.

That Canes defense bullied and dizzied No. 2 Ohio State’s offense like a Rubik’s Cube does a fully-functional adult. Perhaps Chambliss the rare nerd — like me — who memorized the algorithm to beat the Rubik’s Cube. But it took me three months. He’s got seven days. Good luck.

Peach Bowl: No. 1 Indiana vs. No. 5 Oregon (Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET)

Winner: Indiana

(Photo by Melinda Meijer/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)

Perhaps it’s as simple as this: Among the good (Lane Kiffin?) and great (Kirby Smart!), it’s Indiana coach Curt Cignetti who took notes and listened to everything Nick Saban said simply so he could replicate it, just as the new era of college football ran Saban off to TV land and allowed Indiana’s head coach to pull out the 55-gallon drum of whoop-ass and pour it all over the sport.

For Cignetti, it’s no coincidence that all four head coaches in the CFP semis were assistants at Alabama for Saban at one point in a 15-year span — 2007 to 2022.

[The Big Picture: Is a CFP First-Round Bye Actually a Disadvantage?]

“I think everybody learned a lot from Nick,” Cignetti said at his first media availability ahead of the Peach Bowl. “He was a great mentor, very organized, detailed; had a plan for everything. Manage, lead, how to stop complacency, game day, recruiting, in recruiting evaluation, player evaluation. I mean, he had it all. And if you were serious about your career and wanted to be a head coach one day, you took great notes or great mental notes.”

“So I felt like after one year with Coach Saban,” Cignetti said, “that I had learned more about how to run a program than I maybe did the previous 27 as an assistant coach, and stayed with him for three more years. So there’s a lot of disciples out there doing well, and that’s why he’s the greatest of all time.”

Cignetti joined Saban’s staff in 2007 and left it in 2011 to become head coach at Indiana University-Pennsylvania, and he’s only held the title of head coach since. See that, kids? Sometimes, the right internship does prepare you for the job you want. But, like Cignetti at Alabama, make sure they pay you handsomely for your time. Your labor ain’t free.

RJ Young is a national college football writer and analyst for FOX Sports. Follow him @RJ_Young.

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PULLMAN, Wash. (Jan. 5, 2026) – Washington State University Head Football Coach Kirby Moore Monday announced that Brad Larrondo has been named the program’s Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director / General Manager, while also naming seven more assistants to his first coaching staff in Pullman.
 

Larrondo is a veteran of college athletics for more than two decades. Larrondo brings a wealth of experience to Pullman having spent the previous three seasons working closely with Moore at Missouri. For the 2024-25 seasons, Larrondo served as the CEO of Every True Tiger Brands, an NIL Marketing and Branding agency for Missouri athletes. The NIL marketing and brand agency has established itself as a leading collective in college football. Larrondo spent the 2023 season as an assistant athletic director/director football external relations & recruiting at Missouri. Prior to Missouri, Larrondo was the football chief of staff for Bryan Harsin at Auburn for two seasons and served in a similar role under Harsin at Boise State.

“This is a transformational step for Washington State Football,” said Moore. “The work required to manage a roster, including contract negotiations, player evaluation, strategic planning, recruiting and retention requires full time focus. Brad’s extensive experience in the SEC will help us improve our process and program. I look forward to working alongside Brad as we look ahead to great things for WSU Football.”

 

Of the seven new assistant coaches, three will be on the offensive side of the ball and four on defense. The 2026 Cougar coaching staff will include Jack Abercrombie (offensive line), Andrew Browning (rush/defensive run game coordinator), Greg Burns (secondary/safeties), Derham Cato (run game coordinator/tight ends), Eti Ena (defensive tackles), Derek Sage (wide receivers/special teams coordinator) and Brandyn Thompson (cornerbacks).

 

“Adding these seven members to our staff is an exciting step for our program,” said Moore. “Each of them brings experience, energy and a clear commitment to developing our student-athletes on and off the field.”

 

Last week, Moore announced both coordinator positions, Trent Bray (defensive coordinator/linebackers) and Matt Miller (offensive coordinator/quarterbacks), as well as Malcolm Hardmon (director of football athletic performance).

 

Below are brief overviews for the seven new assistant coaches:

Jack Abercrombie – Offensive Line: Spent past three seasons working alongside Kriby Moore at Missouri, the last two as assistant offensive line coach… in 2025, Missouri rushing offense ranked eighth nationally at 234.1 yards per game, led by consensus All-American running back Ahmad Hardy…has also coached at VMI, Mississippi State and Gannon.

 

Andrew Browning – Rush/Defensive Run Game Coordinator: Arrives in Pullman after spending previous eight seasons at California, last seven as defensive line coach…Cal’s defense posted 24-plus sacks in five of those seven years…also coached at UTEP for five seasons…began coaching career at Boise State in 2010, where he spent three seasons when Moore and Miller were teammates.

 

Greg Burns – Secondary/Safeties: A coaching veteran with nearly three decades working with defensive backs at both the professional and collegiate levels…has coached throughout the west, including stops at USC, UCLA, Cal, Arizona, Arizona State and most recently, San José State…played at WSU from 1991-95 under coach Mike Price and was a part of two bowl teams.

Derham Cato – Run Game Coordinator/Tight Ends: Begins his Cougar coaching career after spending previous three seasons working alongside Kirby Moore at Missouri, the last two as tight ends coach…also has coaching stints at Washington, Davidson, Vanderbilt and his alma mater, Dartmouth…following college, played professionally in NFL Europe, the CFL and Arena League.

 

Eti Ena – Defensive Tackles: A veteran coach with two decades of collegiate experience…spent the past two seasons at New Mexico State preceded by two years at Hawai’i…member of Eastern Washington staff from 2016-21 as the Eagles reached the 2018 season championship game and 2016 semifinal…a native of Inchelium, Wash., graduated from Eastern Washington.

 

Derek Sage – Wide Receivers/Special Teams Coordinator: Has spent two decades coaching collegiately, most recently working with tight ends at Toledo the past two seasons…making his second stint in Pullman after coaching outside receivers on Mike Leach’s staff in 2017…has also coached at UCLA, where he was tight ends/special teams coordinator, Nevada, New Hampshire and Wyoming.

 

Brandyn Thompson – Cornerbacks: Thompson arrives in Pullman after spending the 2025 season coaching cornerbacks at Cal Poly…also has coached at Sacramento State and Sacramento City College…2011 seventh-round selection in NFL Draft by Washington after playing at Boise State, where he was a teammate of Kirby Moore…played one season in Washington and then five in CFL.