Rebels vs. Tigers Week 7: Offensive Players to Watch
The Ole Miss Rebels travel to Auburn, Alabama for a Week 7 matchup with the Tigers in 2023. By this time of the college football season, we'll have a clear idea of what the Tigers look like under new head coach Hugh Freeze, who takes over for the departed Bryan Harsin.
Freeze is certainly familiar with life in the SEC after a five-year stint with the Rebels from 2012 through 2016. However, he inherits a team that needs a ton of help after going 11-14 over the past two seasons.
In an attempt to expedite the improvements, Freeze and the Rebels went to the transfer portal and landed Michigan State transfer Payton Thorne to take over at quarterback. That's a good start for a program that needs all the help it can find on both sides of the ball.
Last season, the Tigers' offense ranked 11th in the SEC in scoring with 24.8 points per game and yards per play at 5.7. The passing attack was anemic as well ranking 119th in the nation.
Freeze brought in Philip Montgomery as the new offensive coordinator who hopes to inject some life into the offense with an RPO-based spread system.
QB Payton Thorne
Thorne comes to the Tigers as a transfer from Michigan State, where he appeared in 29 games for the Spartans over three seasons. Thorne threw for 6,493 yards on 525-of-861 passing and registered 49 touchdowns to 24 interceptions. Thorne should thrive under the guidance of Montgomery and his spread offensive set.
RB Jarquez Hunter
Athlon Sports recently ranked Hunter as the third-best back in the SEC. Last season, he was second on the team in scrimmage yards with 892 and tied for second in total touchdowns with nine. Hunter led the team with 6.4 yards per carry while playing second fiddle to the departed Tank Bigsby, who is now running behind Trevor Lawrence with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Hunter also added 17 catches for 224 yards and two touchdowns through the air.
WR Ja'Varrius Johnson
Johnson enters his fourth season with the Tigers where he put up 45 catches for 767 yards and five touchdowns. Last season, Johnson registered 26 catches for 493 yards, and three touchdowns. He put up his biggest game against Mercer where he gained 117 yards on just four catches, his second career 100-yard game, with a long catch of 56 yards.
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