Where Ole Miss Football's Recruiting Class Ranks Following High-Profile Commitments

Pete Golding and the Ole Miss Rebels have quickly been labeled offseason winners after dominating the recruiting trail across a chaotic stretch for the program.

Once Lane Kiffin made the move to depart Oxford for the LSU Tigers, Ole Miss officials wasted no time in elevating Golding from the defensive coordinator spot to full-time head coach where he's quickly hit the ground running.

From the No. 2 rated Transfer Portal haul to a Top-25 2026 Recruiting Class, Golding and his staff have seemingly made a flawless transition as the new era of Ole Miss Football begins.

"The locker room is so fragile, as we all know," Walker Jones, the executive director of the Grove Collective, said to ESPN. "This is the ultimate team sport, and there's no bigger team sport than football [with] so many personalities, so many moving parts.

"You had to hire the guy that can keep the locker room and the coaching staff in sync. It was such a unique situation, first of its kind. There's no blueprint for it."

Ole Miss Football. — Courtesy of Ole Miss Rebels Football.

Now, after a strong stretch where the program won consecutive College Football Playoff games and assembled the No. 2 rated Transfer Portal Class in America, Ole Miss is receiving significant praise.

According to the 247Sports Recruiting Class Rankings, Ole Miss comes in at No. 13 when combining the 2026 Signing Class and Transfer Portal Class.

Who's in? Which newcomers are heading to Oxford this offseason ahead of a critical 2026 season?

A look into the 2026 Recruiting Class and full Transfer Portal haul.

2026 OLE MISS FOOTBALL SIGNING CLASS
Landon Barnes | DE | 6-4 | 240 | FR-HS | Baton Rouge, La./Duncanville
Dorian Barney | CB | 6-0 | 170 | FR-HS | Carrollton, Ga./Carrollton
Jalan Chapman | OL | 6-3 | 305 | FR-HS | New Orleans, La./Warren Easton
Jayden Curtis | DE | 6-3 | 260 | FR-HS | Perkinston, Miss./St. Martin
Ant Davis | LB | 6-1 | 205 | FR-HS | Stockbridge, Ga./Grayson
Emanuel Faulkner | OL | 6-6 | 290 | FR-HS | New Albany, Miss./New Albany
Ja'Michael Garrett | LB | 6-2 | 200 | FR-HS | Baton Rouge, La./Central
Kervin Johnson Jr. | WR | 6-2 | 200 | FR-HS | Tioga, La/Tioga
Ja'Michael Jones | RB | 5-11| 200 | FR-HS | Montgomery, Ala./Pike Road
Victor Lincoln Jr. | CB | 6-0 | 165 | FR-HS | Lancaster, Texas/Duncanville

Ole Miss Rebels Football: Jayden Anding. — Courtesy of Jayden Anding on X.

Kane Mankins | OL | 6-4 | 245 | FR-HS | Attleboro, Mass./Bishop Feehan
Jase Mathews | WR | 6-0 | 190 | FR-HS | Leakesville, Miss./Greene County
Iverson McCoy | CB | 6-0 | 185 | FR-HS | Tupelo, Miss./Tupelo
Nascar McCoy | S | 6-1 | 185 | FR-HS | Atlanta, Ga./Buford
Jamarion Owens | DL | 6-2 | 295 | FR-HS | Raleigh, Miss./Raleigh
Carmelow Reed | DE | 6-6 | 260 | FR-HS | Chicago, Ill./Morgan Park
Case Thomas | WR | 6-2 | 200 | FR-HS | Madison, Miss./Madison-Ridgeland Academy
Craig Tutt | S | 5-10 | 180 | FR-HS | Christiana, Tenn./Oakland
Braylen Williams | S | 5-11 | 190 | FR-HS | Tupelo, Miss./Tupelo
Rees Wise | QB | 6-0 | 210 | FR-HS | Austin, Texas/Westlake
Damarius Yates | RB | 5-10 | 190 | FR-HS | DeKalb, Miss./Kemper County

The Breakdown: Ole Miss' No. 2 Rated Portal Class

Defense:
Jay Crawford – Auburn (CB)
Keaton Thomas – Baylor (LB)
Jonathan Maldonado – Nevada (EDGE)
Sharif Denson – Florida (CB)
Jeheim Oatis – Colorado (DT)
Michai Boireau – Florida (DT)
Joenel Aguero - Georgia (S)
Edwin Joseph – Florida State (S)
Tah'j Butler - Georgia Tech (LB)
Jordan Renaud - Alabama (DL)
Blake Purchase - Oregon (EDGE)
Tony Mitchell - Mississippi State (S)
Luke Ferrelli - Cal (LB)

Ole Miss Rebels Football: Horatio Fields. — Courtesy of Horatio Fields' X.

Offense:
Carius Curne – LSU (OL)
Brady Prieskorn – Michigan (TE)
Deuce Knight – Auburn (QB)
Cameron Miller – Kentucky (WR)
JT Lindsey – LSU (RB)
Troy Everett - Oklahoma (OL)
Walker Howard - Louisiana-Lafayette (QB)
Isaiah Spencer - Virginia Tech (WR)
Darrell Gill Jr. - Syracuse (WR)
Johntay Cook - Syracuse (WR)
Michael Smith - South Carolina (TE)
Joshua Dye - Southern Utah (RB)
Enoch Wangoy - Florida (OT)
Makhi Frazier - Michigan State (RB)
Tommy Kinsler - Miami (OL)
Horatio Fields - Auburn (WR)

More Ole Miss News:

Ole Miss Football Pulls Off Historic Recruiting Feat After Landing No. 2 Portal Class

Ole Miss Football Recruiting Notebook: Three Targets Pete Golding Must Land in Year 1

'Growing Optimism' That Ole Miss Football QB Trinidad Chambliss Will Play in 2026

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Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and Ole Miss Rebels On SI: @OleMissOnSI for all coverage surrounding the Ole Miss program.