The college football season is approaching. Each SEC team will be previewed before the season. Here is the 2022 SEC Football Preview: Ole Miss Rebels.
2021 Recap
2021 Record: 10-2 (6-2), 2nd in West
L vs Baylor in Sugar Bowl
Lane Kiffin has quickly flipped the Ole Miss roster and made them a legitimate national presence in year two. The Rebels set a program record for wins in the regular season at 10. For a chunk of the season Matt Corral flirted with a Heisman invitation, and the Rebels put together their first winning record in SEC play since 2015.
The perfect ending fell short in their bowl game as do it all quarterback Matt Corral went down on the third drive of the game. Still, 2021 was a huge leap for Kiffin and the Rebels.
2022 Outlook
Portal King
Transfers were a huge part of 2020 and 2021 success for Ole Miss. Three of their six 2022 draft picks were transfers. So after another massive haul in the portal, Lane Kiffin dubbed himself the Portal King. This year’s haul is as impressive as any.
Several transfers will have immediate impacts. The starting quarterback hasn’t officially been named but it’s expected that USC transfer Jaxson Dart will be the man. His stud tight end Michael Trigg will also be joining him. And TCU transfer Zack Evans is among the conference’s best at running back.
Defense Continues to Improve
There was only one way for the defense to go when Kiffin took over in 2020, but last year was very encouraging. The defense showed the first signs of life since the 2016 season. Three big names are gone but many are back along with a plethora of incoming transfers.
Otis Reese and A.J. Finley return in the secondary as the team’s top returning tacklers from last year. Finley also led the team in interceptions. Some help on what should be a much deeper defensive line will come from Georgia Tech transfer Jared Ivey. Linebacker will be the weakest unit but highly sought Central Michigan transfer Troy Brown should help fill the void.
Recap
With so many new faces it’s hard to determine the level of success. The good news for Ole Miss is the soft front end of the schedule. They’ll be on the road just twice (Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt) in the front seven games, and face one ranked team (Kentucky). If the team can mesh during that time without dropping a bad one, it could be another impressive year for the Rebels.
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