ESPN Evaluates Current State of Ole Miss Rebels QB Competition
OXFORD, Miss. -- The Ole Miss Rebels entered spring practices with a stacked quarterback room after head coach Lane Kiffin found more talent via the NCAA Transfer Portal in Spencer Sanders and Walker Howard, giving competition to sophomore signal caller Jaxson Dart. All three quarterbacks competed for the starting position throughout spring football and received plenty of reps during the 2023 Grove Bowl.
While Sanders and Howard made some eye-popping plays, Dart performed and looked like the best quarterback on the roster during the Ole Miss spring game, showing improved composure, pocket awareness, and decision-making. It all seemed to click for Dart, as he only recorded one interception the entire spring.
ESPN recently released an update on the quarterback competitions around college football and believes that it will be "difficult" for Sanders or Howard to usurp Dart based on his performance this spring. Here is the excerpt on the Ole Miss quarterback competition.
QB contenders: Jaxson Dart, Spencer Sanders, Walker Howard
Post-spring Week 1 favorite: Jaxson Dart
How the spring affected the race: The Ole Miss coaches couldn't have been happier with Dart and the way he performed this spring. In some ways, bringing in Sanders and Howard might have lit a fire under him, as he clearly took it to the next level with his decision-making and consistency in leading the offense on scoring drives. Dart, who started 12 of 13 games last season after transferring from USC, had only one turnover all spring. Sanders was limited by a shoulder injury but made up ground as he became healthier. He saved his best for last and was the Rebels' most impressive quarterback in the spring game. Sanders, who accounted for 85 career touchdowns at Oklahoma State in four years as a starter, is a perfect fit for what Ole Miss does in its quarterback run game. Howard, a former 5-star recruit at LSU, showcased his ability to throw the deep ball and generated a lot of explosive plays, but he also turned the ball over and is still probably a year away from being a serious candidate for the starting job.
Long-term outlook: Dart was good enough (and consistent enough) in the spring that it's going to be difficult for anyone to unseat him. What he did better than anybody was get the ball into the end zone, and that's the ultimate measure of a quarterback. But to say Sanders, especially with all of his experience and athleticism, is too far behind to catch Dart would be premature. And who's to say both quarterbacks won't contribute in some form or fashion in 2023? Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin has been adamant that he's going to build the most talented roster he can, and he knows as well as anyone you can never have enough good quarterbacks. Ole Miss goes so fast on offense it helps to have as many reps as possible in that system. For Dart, everything seemed to slow down this spring, and his footwork, timing and rhythm were all improved. Ole Miss doesn't have to name a starter until more than three months from now. But if that decision had to be made today, it would be Dart. -- Low
ESPN projects Dart to remain Ole Miss' starting quarterback this fall, and it is hard to disagree. The added competition appears to have taken Dart's game to another level, as Kiffin mentioned in March that the Kaysville, Utah, native has become one of the "most improved players" on his roster. While Sanders likely still has a decent shot due to his athleticism and experience, Dart's improvement and upside will be too great to pass up.
You can follow Ben King on Twitter at @BKing_2023.
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