Ole Miss Secondary Faces Its Most Important Stretch of the Season

After a hot and cold 3-1 start, the Rebels have some improvements to make over the bye week.

Mississippi Rebels linebacker Suntarine Perkins reacts with cornerback Jaylon Braxton after an interception during the fourth quarter against the LSU Tigers at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

So far, the 2026 season has been one filled with ups and downs for Ole Miss' secondary.

The No. 9 Rebels have many new transfer players in their secondary who've had to find their place on the defense.

After four games, it's time to take a look at their performance, and what they need to do going forward if Ole Miss wants to end this regular season with a playoff berth.

Ole Miss' Struggles So Far This Season

Florida Gators running back Duke Clark runs against Mississippi Rebels safety Sharif Denson during the first half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In its four games against Louisville, Charlotte, LSU and Florida, Ole Miss' secondary has had rough performances against the Cardinals and Gators, but played significantly better against Charlotte and LSU.

Ole Miss opened the season by giving up over 300 passing yards to Louisville and quarterback Lincoln Kienholz, who was making his first start since high school after riding the bench at Ohio State.

Things looked brighter for the Rebel secondary after the games against Charlotte and LSU. In the LSU game specifically, the secondary was a major reason for the win. They limited Sam Leavitt to less than 160 passing yards and only one passing touchdown, as well as getting the game-winning interception off of a tipped pass.

A major reason for the improved performance was guys like safety Sharif Denson and cornerback Antonio Kite getting healthy after some injury trouble to open the season.

Things were looking up, Ole Miss was No. 4 in the country after beating LSU and was seemingly carrying all the momentum into their game against Florida.

Ole Miss would get humbled that week by a 52-28 loss to Florida. Florida QB Aaron Philo passed for nearly 200 yards and a touchdown despite only throwing eight passes beyond the line of scrimmage.

Despite not being the main issue in that game, the blowout loss to Florida exposed holes in the secondary that have to be fixed over the upcoming bye week.

What Needs To Change Going Forward?

Ole Miss Rebels safety Sharif Denson reacts after a play against the Louisiana State Tigers during the first quarter at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In order to correct the struggles going forward, Ole Miss is going to need its expensive transfer players to step up and fill the role they've been expected to.

Prior to the start of the season, the talent on this defense drew comparisons to Ole Miss' standout 2024 defense from Ole Miss head coach Pete Golding.

Golding has held firm on his philosophy of rotating the defensive backs until they find five solid starters; unfortunately, not enough players have stepped up to solidify the roles and reach the highs of that 2024 defense.

Guys like Edwin Joseph Jr. and Joenel Aguero have particularly gotten attention for their slow starts. Joseph has consistently been close to making plays without actually finishing them, and Aguero had a late hit that resulted in a targeting penalty that got him ejected from the game against Florida.

Comparatively, guys like cornerbacks Antonio Kite, Jaylon Braxton and Jalyn Crawford have played well. Braxton, in particular, caught the game-winning tipped interception against LSU.

Ole Miss, having already taken a loss, likely doesn't have room to lose more than one more game and still make it into this season's College Football Playoff.

On top of a low margin for error, Ole Miss still has to play star quarterbacks like Texas' Arch Manning, Georgia's Gunner Stockton and Mississippi State's Kamario Taylor.

If Ole Miss' secondary, and really defense as a whole, wants to avoid losing to any or all of those three teams in a blowout similar to the Florida game, it's going to take Pete Golding finding the best group to start and stay on the field, even if that means utilizing younger players like safety Ladarian Clardy over more established guys like Joseph and Aguero, who have been inconsistent.

Ole Miss linebacker Keaton Thomas recently put the blame on himself for the defensive struggles. Someone in the Rebels' defensive back room will need to show that same level of leadership and do the same to right the ship before the mistakes sink Ole Miss' 2026 season.

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