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The Ole Miss Rebels had perhaps their best season in program history, but it still wasn’t a success for Kewan Lacy.
“I grade him based on that: that he didn’t win the ultimate prize,” the star running back told Pak Gazette Digital in a recent interview.
In any case, however, the Rebels were able to overcome the distraction and fiasco of Lane Kiffin leaving Oxford to join LSU just before the playoffs began. At no point during the postseason did the team have no idea which assistants would be on the sidelines, as many of them joined Kiffin at LSU.
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Kewan Lacy of the Mississippi Rebels attempts to pass Cale Williams of the Citadel Bulldogs during the first quarter at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford, Mississippi, on Nov. 8, 2025. (Jason Clark/Getty Images)
“We still came up short in the season. The main goal is to get that national title. But we never let the outside noise get to us. We just tried to focus on game by game,” Lacy added.
“It’s part of football now. There’s a business aspect, so everyone has to do what they have to do. But I feel like we just have to go out and do what we have to do, because at the end of the day we’re on the field and playing football, whether our coaches are there or not, or under any other circumstance, you still have to go out and play football. So, at the end of the day, I feel like we just take that mentality and go out and compete.”
Hoping to win a national title, Lacy will sport the Q-Collar, the first and only FDA-approved sports equipment shown to help protect the brain from the effects of repetitive head impacts. The Q-Collar is placed around the neck and applies light pressure to help limit brain movement during football-related head movements.
Old Miss running back Kewan Lacy will wear the Q-Collar this season. (Q Necklace)
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Moms know better, as it was Lacy’s mother who found the Q-Collar and recommended it to Lacy.
“He found it, saw other players playing with it, brought it to my attention, did some research and thought it would be beneficial for me and my brother to use it,” Lacy said. “It’s helped me a lot, just trying to find different ways to protect myself, be as smart as possible on the field and maximize my playing time or the time I have on the field.
“I feel like there is a lot more we can do to better help us as athletes protect our bodies. Equipment like the Q-Collar is the start to finding different ways we can be safer and help us play longer in the game.”
Lacy, already an All-American, now has a little extra protection to gain some more yards in the trenches. With the return of “special talent” Trinidad Chambliss, along with many returning players, expectations are high for Lacy and the Rebels.
“Going into this year with our new staff and all the new pieces we have, I feel like we have to take it game by game, and this year I feel like we can go even further,” he said.
Ole Miss’ Kewan Lacy carries the ball for a touchdown against Miami in the second quarter during the College Football Playoff semifinal in the VRBO Fiesta Bowl at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on Jan. 8, 2026. (Chris Coduto/Getty Images)
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“We can close the deal. I just can’t wait.”
