NCAA Argues Ole Miss Gaining ‘Unfair' Advantage With QB Trinidad Chambliss In Appeal To Keep Him Off The Field

The NCAA is not going down without a fight in its case that played out inside a Mississippi courtroom last month between the NCAA and Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss like something out of a John Grisham novel. 

On Thursday, the organization filed an appeal with the State of Mississippi Supreme Court regarding the preliminary injunction that was granted to Chambliss, which will allow him to suit up for the Rebels this upcoming season. 

In what was a dramatic scene, NCAA lawyers did not wait around for the ruling from Judge Robert Whitwell, which took over an hour for him to read, knowing that they would be on the wrong side of that part of the saga, while also understanding that an appeal to a higher court was the next step. 

BREAKING: Trinidad Chambliss Granted Preliminary Injunction As Judge Hammers NCAA, Ole Miss Should Have Its QB

In their argument against the NCAA, attorneys for Trinidad Chambliss noted that the reason he should have been granted a medical redshirt during the 2022 season at Ferris State was due to an ongoing issue with his tonsils. Chambliss' attorneys essentially centered their case around Ferris State not documenting the "lost" season due to a technicality, which they wanted Judge Whitwell to take into consideration. 

Ultimately, Chambliss was granted his injunction, and the quarterback is preparing for spring practice in Oxford, with the Judge making a determination that the NCAA did, in fact, ignore medical documents provided by the plaintiffs that proved he was not cleared medically to participate in the season in question at Ferris State. 

But, the NCAA was not going down without exhausting all of their options in a timely manner, given this case would drag out past the upcoming season, which is the sole reason why Chambliss was seeking the injunction. 

The NCAA's Argument For Appeal? Chambliss Playing Is Unfair To Others

Trinidad Chambliss being allowed to play football next season is unfair to other schools that are abiding by NCAA rules pertaining to eligibility. 

"Under the trial court's order, UM will enjoy the benefit of rostering a star quarterback who is no longer eligible to compete," part of the NCAA's appeal reads. "Such an outcome is unfair to D1 schools who follow the rules and must compete against UM in the 2026-2027 DI football season or who may be displaced from postseason competition by UM."

And, the NCAA wants an expedited review of this appeal by the Mississippi Supreme Court because they say the claim by Chambliss isn't viable as a matter of law. 

"This case is therefore ripe for judgment in the NCAA's favor," the organization submitted to the court. 

In their filing of an "interlocutory appeal," the NCAA also mentions that since they view the initial ruling as not legally viable, they want this expedited to save them unnecessary expenses, while also not "taxing the resources of the trial court."

Also, the NCAA has cited a ruling from 2015 from the Mississippi Supreme Court, in which they overturned an eligibility case for a girls' high school basketball player in the state, which the player was first granted by a lower court. At the time, the Mississippi High School Athletic Association rules stated that the player was ineligible because she had transferred to a different school during a time period before the season that was not allowed. 

At the time, a Chancery Court had granted the player an injunction so that she could play, but the Supreme Court overturned that decision. 

Essentially, the NCAA is arguing a chancery court cannot grant an injunction for a case that involves a rule that participating schools had already agreed to when they joined the organization, which they argue is the same as the Mississippi High school Atheltic Association. 

Honestly, it's not a bad argument, and could hold merit at the Supreme Court level. 

The NCAA knows that without this appeal win, Trinidad Chambliss will ultimately play for Ole Miss next season, and then stop worrying about the case as he prepares for the NFL. 

"Everyone remembers when the NCAA famously appealed to the Supreme Court in the Alston case and got their teeth knocked out by Justice Kavanaugh," Chambliss' attorney Tom Mars told OutKick. "I expect the NCAA to be spitting chiclets in this appeal as well."

Will it work? Who knows, given that every state is different. Last month, the Alabama Supreme Court did not rule in the favor of basketball player Charles Bediako, in his attempt to continue playing college basketball after a stint in the G-League. 

Now, we wait to see if the state's supreme court will side with the Ole Miss starting quarterback, or with the rules that the NCAA say that Trinidad Chambliss is skirting around thanks to a local judge.