2025 Position Preview: Ole Miss Football Running Backs

How will the Rebels reload at running back in 2025 after losing some top backs to the NFL?

Baylor's Shekai Mills-Knight (1) celebrates his touchdown during the TSSAA BlueCross Bowl Division II-AAA championship game at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tenn. on Thursday, Nov 30, 2023. / Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

It's no secret that the Ole Miss Rebels had trouble running the football last season, as running games around the SEC seemed to be down as a whole. Whether you blame the struggles on the ground on mismanagement, run blocking, a personnel issue, or a combination, it has to get better as the Rebels will be breaking in a new starting quarterback in 2025.

Ole Miss' running back room is getting revamped with exception of one player who is coming off a serious knee injury. With that being said, let's take a look at the current state of the running back position.

Logan Diggs

Diggs is the player coming off a serious knee injury but got his first playing time in the Gator Bowl where he had minimal playing time in the big win over Duke.

Time will tell what role Diggs will play, but he is the most experienced back in this room heading into 2025. He put up some solid numbers earlier in his career with Notre Dame and LSU, and Ole Miss will likely need him to do the same beginning in the fall.

Shekai Mills-Knight

Mills-Knight is the the 6-foot-3, 220-pound freshman out of the Baylor School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Rebels were in search of a power back in 2024, so could Mills-Knight be that piece in 2025?

Lane Kiffin does have success with freshmen running backs throughout his time in Oxford, so it will be interesting to see how big Mills-Knight's role is in 2025. It would make sense for him to see a decent work load, if he can translate to SEC life.

Kewan Lacy

Lacy is a transfer from Missouri who the Rebels were very high on in the class of 2024. The 6-foot-1, 196-pound back out of Lancaster, Texas, is a speedster who could a nice change up from a back like Mills-Knight.

Lacy didn't see a ton of action in his true freshman year at Missouri, but as he matures and grows, he could play a vital role in the rushing attack for Ole Miss this fall.

Jordon Simmons

Simmons is another transfer that the Rebels landed out of the portal this offseason, coming to Oxford from the Akron Zips. The 6-foot, 192-pound running back began his career at Michigan State before ending up at Akron, and he has amassed 1,100 yards rushing and two touchdowns over the past four seasons.

Last year for the Zips, Simmons rushed for 664 yards and two scores. He should provide some nice depth at the running back position in 2025.

Trey Hall

Hall is another speedster out of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and was one of the best backs in the JUCO ranks last season. Hall is a wild card, and it will be interesting to see if he can make the jump to the SEC.

Still, it never hurts to add a capable rushing talent, and Hall fits that bill.

READ MORE Ole Miss Rebels News:

feed