Questions Ole Miss Football Needs to Answer in Spring Practice
OXFORD, Miss. -- The Ole Miss Rebels made it through the initial NCAA Transfer Portal window this offseason with the No. 3 class in the nation, per On3, and now have to wait for spring practice to start in March before they can really begin working towards their 2024 aspirations.
Ole Miss' Lane Kiffin and Pete Golding have had a busy offseason recruiting some of the best talent in the country, but the work is only beginning, as they now have to get on the practice field and start coaching all these new pieces to play like a cohesive unit by the end of August.
The portal will reopen from April 16-30, so changes could still be coming to the Ole Miss roster. For now though, here are three questions the Rebels will need to answer during spring practice.
Carleigh Harbin-The Grove Report
1. Do the Rebels need to find an extra RB via the portal?
Ole Miss landed some big commits via the portal, but it also lost superstar running back Quinshon Judkins, leaving a bell-cow sized hole in the Rebels' running back room. Fortunately, senior speedster Ulysses Bentley is running it back for one more season, and will likely be the feature tailback in Kiffin's offense. Behind Bentley is where things start to get interesting, however.
Kiffin snagged former LSU running back Logan Diggs from the portal this offseason, but he is coming off an injury and likely will not be ready at the start of the 2024 season. That leaves freshman Kedrick Reescano, Matt Jones, and Fred McAfee as the most experienced tailbacks at Ole Miss. Reescano is a former four-star recruit from the 2023 signing class and holds loads of untapped potential, as he recorded no carries last season. As mentioned above, the portal will reopen in April for two weeks, so Kiffin has time to figure out if he needs an extra body or not.
2. Who is starting along the upgraded offensive line?
The trenches were made a priority this offseason after quarterback Jaxson Dart was sacked 12 more times in 2023 than he was in 2022. Ole Miss received commitments from former UNC tackle Diego Pounds, Southern Miss guard Gerquan Scott, and Washington linemen Nate Kalepo and Julius Buelow. The latter two were part of a Washington unit that earned the Joe Moore Award in 2023 for being the best offensive line in the country. The Huskies allowed only 11 sacks last season, giving quarterback Michael Penix Jr. plenty of time to lead Washington to a national title berth.
The Rebels' notable returners are center Caleb Warren, tackle Micah Pettus, guard/tackle Jeremy James, freshman Brycen Sanders, and sophomore Preston Cushman. This is a good problem to have, but it is going to take Kiffin time to figure out which five linemen play best together this spring.
3. How will all these new pieces on defense fit together?
It has been an exciting offseason if you are an Ole Miss fan. The Rebels are coming off their first 11-win season in program history, have national championship aspirations entering 2024, and added elite talent via the portal. The defensive side of the ball received the bulk of the reinforcements, and while that does give the Rebels a formidable unit on paper, things do not always work out on the field the way they do on the drawing board.
There is no denying that Kiffin and Golding recruited high-level talent this offseason, but these players have never played a down of football together, and chemistry is critical. It will be interesting to see how Ole Miss' new and improved defense grows together as a unit throughout spring practice, culminating of course with the Grove Bowl.
