JUMP TO:
- Where is Trinidad Chambliss from?
- Trinidad Chambliss recruiting
- Where did Trinidad Chambliss play before Ole Miss?
- Trinidad Chambliss Ferris State stats
- Why did Trinidad Chambliss transfer to Ole Miss?
In 2025, college football is a next-man-up game. Nowhere is that mantra more true than at the quarterback position. One signal-caller who has made a name for himself is Ole Miss' Trinidad Chambliss. His rise to national prominence came as a surprise, as Chambliss started the season on the bench, backing up Rebels starter Austin Simmons.
After Simmons went down with an injury during Ole Miss' Week 3 game against Kentucky, Lane Kiffin turned to Chambliss, and he has been the starter ever since. Through his five games as Ole Miss' starter, he is already among the top 10 in passing in the conference, having thrown for 1,286 yards and seven touchdowns with just one interception.
Prior to getting his shot at Ole Miss, Chambliss began his career at Division II Ferris State. The Bulldogs won three national titles in four years from 2021–2024, with Chambliss leading Ferris State to one as a junior in 2024.
The Sporting News spoke with some of Chambliss' former coaches about his journey from Division II to becoming one of the hottest quarterbacks in the SEC.
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Where is Trinidad Chambliss from?
Chambliss is from Grand Rapids, Mich., and played high school football at Forest Hills Northern.
"Grand Rapids and Detroit are the two biggest cities in Michigan," Chambliss' high school coach at Forest Hills, Eddie Ostipow, told The Sporting News via phone interview. "The west side of the state here is highly competitive. We've got lots of really good high school programs, so it’s certainly not an easy schedule. There are no weeks off over here."
Chambliss was also a standout basketball player at Forest Hills.
"He was fantastic," Ostipow said of Chambliss on the basketball court. "He was all over the place, up and down the floor—certainly the best athlete on the floor, not even close. I think basketball really helped him in his football career. I would always tell him, 'Hey, you're the point guard of the football team. Your job is to run the offense, distribute the ball.' And I think he really embraced that."
He helped lead his basketball team to a state semifinal appearance during his senior year in 2020–2021.
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Trinidad Chambliss recruiting
Chambliss was not rated by 247Sports as a recruit coming out of high school. He received offers from schools like Dayton and Butler, but both are non-scholarship programs for football. His senior season coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, limiting his exposure.
"People don't understand, 'how did he not get looks?' And he did, but it was COVID," Ostipow said. "There weren't camps; those were kind of cut off. So we did a virtual combine here at Northern and sent those films to different colleges because you couldn't have face-to-face contact. I think that was one of the roadblocks for him in getting more looks at a higher level,"
While football was not Chambliss' first love, Ostipow encouraged him to pursue the sport in college.
"I really pushed hard for him to consider football," Ostipow said. "I was like, 'Hey, you never know when it's all said and done. It's not really up to us; it's going to be what other coaches want. Don't sell yourself short. Keep your options open.'"
Ostipow added that Chambliss throws the ball as good as any quarterback he's had in his 26 years of coaching.
One coach who took notice of Chambliss was Tony Annese, who has been at Ferris State since 2012. The Bulldogs play in Division II in the GLIAC, winning back-to-back national titles in 2021 and 2022. Before Ferris State, Annese won national titles at Grand Rapids Community College in 2009 and 2011. His youngest son, Anthony, played with Trinidad in high school and put him on Ferris State's radar.
"Coach Annese has done a great job there," Ostipow said. "He met with Trinidad, and after his conversation with Tony, he was sold. He felt like that was the right place for him, and it ended up working out great."
"We look at it as, 'what is his spatial awareness, his vision?'" Annese said of how his program evaluates quarterbacks. "'What's his aptitude for making all the reads and executing all the plays? And is he athletic enough to be a dual-threat player? We run the ball a lot with our quarterback. I think we've led the nation in rushing yards for a quarterback 12 of our 13 years at Ferris State. It's a big priority for us, and we love that part of the game that Trinidad could bring. You could tell from an early age he had the capacity to do that.'"
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Where did Trinidad Chambliss play before Ole Miss?
Chambliss played at Ferris State from 2021-2024. But he did not start right away—he took a redshirt in 2021, and made his first game start as a sophomore in 2023. The Bulldogs have produced plenty of talented players, boasting current NFL stars like Miami Dolphins Most Valuable Player from 2024 in Zach Sieler, Chargers linebacker Caleb Murphy and Vikings safety Tavierre Thomas.
"Part of who we are and what we do is we have a lot of good players," Annese said.
Instead of trying to transfer as he waited to see playing time at Ferris State, Annese applauds Chambliss' patience in the process.
"The biggest challenge young people have today is they want instant gratification," Annese said. "And the portal has led to that negative capacity for growth. and that's really sad, because young people need to know what persistence is and overcoming adversity and being patient and consistently growing. A lot of times when you know you don't play, then a lot of young people don't grow. And that's really one of the best attributes that Trinidad showed is that he always grew. He was willing to wait his turn while constantly pursuing his best."
"The thing that's missed a lot right now in our society is that nobody wants to wait," Ostipow added. "Everybody wants it now. And the reality of that happening is just not the way it works in college or beyond. So for him to be able to to sit and wait and and not transfer, not throw in the towel, but wait for his opportunity, that says a lot about him."
Trinidad Chambliss Ferris State stats
| Season | Games | Comp % | Pass Yds | TD | INT | Rush Yds | Rush TDS |
| 2023-24 | 8 | 63.60 | 354 | 5 | 1 | 304 | 4 |
| 2024-25 | 15 | 61.60 | 2,925 | 26 | 6 | 1,019 | 25 |
Chambliss became the Bulldogs' starter in 2024, and helped lead Ferris State to a national title. He threw for 2,925 with 26 touchdowns and just six interceptions, and Ferris State defeated Valdosta State 49-14 in the title game. Chambliss threw three touchdowns passes and rushed for another two in the win.
But his season didn't start out hot. In Ferris State's first game of the season against Pittsburgh State, he threw two interceptions and no touchdowns in a 19-3 loss.
"He had a disaster of a game," Annese said. "And we got beat, so the lesson is, it's not always going to be perfect."
"After the game, I just made sure he knew that we knew he was going to be a great quarterback for us," Annese continued. "And just as a matter of just letting it happen. And he consistently grew. He never had a bad day mentally, which is important. A lot of people want to overreact to negativity, even hard coaching. He took hard coaching like a champ."
Why did Trinidad Chambliss transfer to Ole Miss?
Chambliss began receiving interest from various schools shortly after Ferris State’s national title in December 2024. At first, Chambliss didn’t want to leave Ferris State, his home for four years.
“He called me, and he was virtually in tears,” Annese said, recalling the conversation. “He said, ‘Coach, I don’t want to go anywhere else. This is where I want to be.’ I said, ‘Trin, I didn’t mean to make you feel like I wanted you to get in the portal. I just thought maybe you should test the water.’”
But he did end up entering the transfer portal in April 2025. With the influx of NIL money in the FBS, Chambliss saw an opportunity he couldn’t pass up.
“As time went on, the push kept going,” Annese said. “And the next window opened, and people were just bombarding him. At some point, you have to ask yourself as a young person, ‘How does this NIL money impact my family?’ No young person wants to be negligent of their family’s needs. So in his mind, he said, ‘Maybe this is life-changing for my family.’”
Head coach Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss came calling, and Chambliss committed to the Rebels in mid-April 2025. He was set to compete for the starting job alongside sophomore Austin Simmons. Although he didn’t initially win the starting role, Chambliss got his opportunity when Simmons went down with an ankle injury against Kentucky.
“My concern for all my guys is, ‘Are you going to get a chance?’” Annese said of his conversations with Chambliss regarding Ole Miss.
“If you want to be in the NFL,” Annese continued, “and you don’t get your chance to show yourself at a Power Four school, then this could be the worst thing that happens to you. But Trinidad said, ‘I’m gonna bet on myself, coach.’ And I said, ‘I respect that.’ Obviously, if Austin Simmons hadn’t gotten hurt, would he have gotten his chance?”
Chambliss wasted no time taking command of Ole Miss’ offense. He has led the Rebels to a perfect 6-0 record, including signature wins over Arkansas and No. 4 LSU on Sept. 27.
“Trinidad saw Ferris State playing 14 playoff games that were win-or-go-home,” Annese said, reflecting on Chambliss handling SEC pressure. “He started several of them his last year, and those are high-pressure situations.”
“We were down 11 at halftime,” Annese continued, recalling Ferris State’s 2024 semifinal playoff game against Slippery Rock. “At halftime, I said to Trin, ‘We’re going to have to score a touchdown on every possession in the second half to win.’ And he said, ‘I got you, coach.’ And that’s what we did. We won the game, then went on to win the national championship. He’s been in high-pressure situations.”
In each of his last four games, Chambliss has passed for over 300 yards with six touchdowns and only one interception. He’s also added 281 rushing yards with three scores, keeping defenses off balance with his dual-threat ability.
“The most impressive thing about him at Ole Miss is that the moment doesn’t seem too big for him,” Ostipow said. “He’s only been with the Rebels since early summer, but he seems very comfortable. He’s not nervous back there, he’s not antsy in the pocket. He’s patient and running the offense effectively.”
If Chambliss keeps playing like he has, he could be a dark horse candidate for the Heisman Trophy. He currently has +2500 odds to win the award entering Week 8.
"He just kind of had that uncanny ability to make something out of nothing," Ostipow added. "And I think that's what really helps him at that level. Because in the SEC you're seeing the best of the best."