Ole Miss Rebels Defensive Line Ranked Among Top 10 Nationally

Can the Ole Miss Rebels D-line live up to the hype this season?

Dec 30, 2023; Atlanta, GA, USA; Mississippi Rebels defensive end Jared Ivey (15) celebrates after a tackle against the Penn State Nittany Lions in the first quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

With the college football season in the not-so-distant future, certain sites have started to release their Top 10 units at each position group throughout the country. The Ole Miss Rebels have been getting high praise as their team seems to have some of the top talent in the country according to sites like Pro Football Focus.

PFF recently released its Top 10 defensive line units in the country, and the Rebels clocked in at No. 5 with multiple high-profile programs like Ohio State, Georgia, Michigan, Texas and Penn State.

Top 10 Defensive Lines in College Football💪

(Via: @MaxChadwickCFB) pic.twitter.com/Q52PziIAmY

— PFF College (@PFF_College) June 8, 2024

Teams with elite defensive fronts tend to make more noise come December and January, and with the new playoff format, having a fresh front-seven will pay dividends when you start playing the 15th and 16th games of the season.

PFF attributes the Rebels' ranking to "two massive additions via the transfer portal" and believes that "Both [Princely} Umanmielen and [Walter] Nolen could be first-round picks next April." While Umanmielen and Nolen were massive pickups for the Rebels, it's what they return that separates them from others in the SEC.

Jared Ivey and JJ Pegues have proven that they can hold their own in SEC play, and after announcing they would both be returning for 2024, Rebels fans knew that this year could be something special defensively.

With the new addition of Chris Hardie from the transfer portal, Ole Miss has now paired first-round talent with above-average depth all along the defensive line.

This goes without mentioning the younger players like Kam Franklin and Jeffery Rush who should develop nicely. If the Rebels hope to accomplish what they have set out to do in the "Last Dance" this season, the defensive line will need to be as good as advertised.