Rebels Targeting Variety of Pass Catchers through Transfer Portal
Javon Baker made it to campus after all.
The Alabama transfer wide receiver was expected to visit Oxford over the weekend but elected to detour to the University of Florida first. Following the trip, there is optimism he returns to Gainesville for good, but not before a trip to Ole Miss before a potential final decision.
Such is the nature of the transfer portal.
Lane Kiffin's program has been among the most active to date in courting college players with experience, adding seven recruits among transfer commitments thus far. Only the brand new staffs at LSU and Florida have more, with 11 and eight respectively, as of Tuesday evening. Offensive lineman Mason Brooks was just added to the Rebel list, announcing his intentions to join the program after an all-conference run at Western Kentucky.
The Rebels have added players at several positions on both side of the ball, perhaps most notably TCU running back Zach Evans, but priorities remain. Quarterback speaks for itself with the staff shooting its shot for Caleb Williams while Jaxson Dart was just on campus -- but it was the other prospect seeing campus with Dart who also personifies a true need.
Michael Trigg, a pass-catcher.
The position group, as a whole with wide receivers, slots and tight ends included, may have been the one where Ole Miss casts its widest net to this point in the offseason transfer process. It landed Louisville transfer Jordan Watkins in December, but many targets remain moving forward.
Trigg, the biggest as a hybrid tight-end type and potential package deal with Dart, is the most obvious. Now, Baker is on campus. It previously hosted Syracuse transfer Taj Harris, and Wyoming transfer Isaiah Neyor was on campus last week despite having made a transfer commitment to Tennessee already.
If that isn't a classic Kiffin move from the portal perspective, what can be?
While Neyor contemplates a potential flip, there have been other wide receiver targets under consideration for Ole Miss, and some have yet to make that final call. Baker may end up as a Gator, but getting him back on campus is half the battle, even if the race isn't expected to last very long.
Ole Miss is looking to replace plenty of offensive production beyond the obvious of Matt Corral, the next top three rushers on the roster and multiple linemen. Among pass-catchers, well more than half of the team's 284 completions in 2021 (>194 receptions) are departing for the NFL or elsewhere. Watkins won't be alone among those brought in to help the cause.
Deion Smith of LSU looked like a relative lock from the rumors of him entering the portal late in the fall, and even more so after he submitted his name in. The Mississippi native, though, may have hit an off-the field snag in that part of the process, and so much around his name is to be determined. Kobe Hudson of Auburn also looked like a strong candidate, even scoring a tweet from Kiffin soon after entering the portal, but he followed the coach he initially signed with in Gus Malzahn and will suit up for UCF in 2022.
Between Trigg, Baker, Harris, Neyor and perhaps Vanderbilt's Cam Johnson, who was reportedly interested in the Rebels earlier this offseason, the program will likely push to complement Watkins with another experienced addition.
If not, the onus may fall on one of the young prospects on the roster to emerge up the new-look offensive depth chart. The Rebels did sign a talented wide receiver corps in December, led by in-state talents Jeremiah Dillon and Larry Simmons, both of whom impressed in person leading up to the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Game last month. Texas tight end Kyirin Heath is also already signed as part of the Rebels top 25 recruiting class.
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