Ole Miss Receivers Weigh in on the Quarterback Competition
You have to follow breadcrumbs out of Oxford to find who the Ole Miss starting quarterback will be when 2020 starts.
The hints are there from words spoken by coaches, but it seems like Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss offensive staff are going to draw out the quarterback race as long as they can, maybe up to opening weekend.
For now, signs point to Matt Corral being named starter. But the way both Corral and John Rhys Plumlee play really is not all that different in the minds of the Ole Miss receivers.
"There's been a lot of improvement from both of them. Corral and Plumlee, their game is kind of similar. Both can run but both this year are doing a better job reading defenses," said true sophomore receiver Jonathan Mingo. I'm comfortable with either one out there. At the end of the day, my job is to, when the ball comes my way to make the best of the opportunity. It doesn't really matter which quarterback is out there, I just have to do my job."
Mingo, who started 12 games as a true freshman on year ago, caught passes from both Corral and Plumlee one year ago. As a freshman, he totaled 12 catches for 172 yards and one touchdown.
Elijah Moore, on the other hand, is the unquestioned veteran of the receiver room. Moore, who is seen as one of the top slot receivers in college football for this upcoming season, has played both both Corral and Plumlee, as well as Jordan Ta'amu from 2018.
"They're both great quarterbacks who make good decisions," Moore said of the competition. "Only time can tell for real. It's really hard to decipher them because they're both really great."
But Moore did have more to say.
He admitted that dragging the competition out isn't exactly the best thing for the receiving room. Ideally, he'd want the coaches to decide on a starter soon. But unfortunately he isn't the ones making the decision.
"Of course it would make it easier (if they decided earlier), just to get more reps with someone and stuff like that," Moore said. "One thing I will say from last year to this year, it doesn't matter which quarterback is in there. You have to take reps with everyone and make sure that if something happens, it's next man up. You have to be comfortable with everyone."
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