OXFORD — Two Ole Miss football spring practices are complete, and they've been loaded with tidbits we can use to figure out what coach Lane Kiffin's Rebels will look like in 2024.
Before Ole Miss returns to the practice field on Monday, let's overreact to what we've seen so far.
The Ole Miss offensive line might not look so different after all
Ole Miss has provided fewer opportunities to view team periods than it did last year, so there aren't many data points available to piece together the depth chart.
The first offensive line unit that the Rebels trotted onto the practice turf as they opened their preseason Wednesday was, however, notable. From left to right, it included: Jayden Williams, Caleb Warren, Gerquan Scott, Jeremy James and Micah Pettus. It did not include transfers Diego Pounds or Julius Buelow. (Another transfer, Nate Kalepo, was not involved Wednesday and wore a black no-contact jersey Thursday).
There is plenty of time for that unit to change before Ole Miss kicks off on Aug. 31 – Kiffin made it clear that he doesn't know his starters at the position yet. Given the partial access, it's also possible that later periods of practice saw Pounds or Buelow get involved with the first unit.
But what we saw certainly challenged the assumption that the Ole Miss offensive line will be loaded up with three or four transfers when it takes the field against Furman. It's a position to monitor as the preseason progresses.
Ole Miss football has the best wide receiver room in the country
After he spent the spring, and much of the 2023 South Carolina season, on the sidelines, Juice Wells is healthy. And he looks great.
Let's take stock of the group that the former second-team All-SEC performer is joining. There's Tre Harris, who should battle Mizzou's Luther Burden for the right to be the conference's top wideout. Then factor in Jordan Watkins, who returns for a fifth year after piling up 741 receiving yards last season. Behind that trio there's the uber-talented sophom*ore Ayden Williams, who was perhaps the most impressive of the bunch during the 2023 preseason, and Cayden Lee, who showed well enough to start for an injured Watkins against Penn State in the Peach Bowl. True freshman Noreel White has already flashed, too.
And then, there's Deion Smith, who posted on social media that he's now in Oxford. As of Friday morning, he wasn't yet on the Ole Miss roster, but he could be soon. He's the top junior college prospect in the country, and has already proven he belongs in the SEC with a strong true freshman season at LSU.
From the top-level level talent like Harris and Wells to the depth, it's an embarrassment of riches. Keeping everyone happy and engaged is going to be a challenge.
Ulysses Bentley IV can carry the load for Ole Miss football. But will he get the chance?
Listed by Ole Miss at 200 pounds, Ulysses Bentley IV said Wednesday that he's up to 205 pounds. He also said that he played most of last season at around 188 pounds despite being listed at 200 pounds in the preseason media guide.
His goal in adding weight? To increase his durability while maintaining his quickness.
"I feel really heavy for some reason," Bentley joked. "I still have my speed."
Bentley has not carried the ball more than 100 times since his redshirt freshman season at SMU, when he rushed 170 times for 913 yards and 11 touchdowns. There's a world where he gets that type of volume again with the Rebels this season, though he'll have to outpace transfers Rashad Amos and Henry Parrish Jr. to earn it.
Kiffin said he's open to structuring his backfield in a couple of different ways.
"I don't really care which way it goes," Kiffin said. "Whether it's one guy's so far ahead that one guy does it or there's two or there's three. We'll just figure out the best way to win."
PERKINS:What Ole Miss' Suntarine Perkins said about where Lane Kiffin is playing him in Rebels defense
The Ole Miss football backup quarterback job could be up for grabs
When asked about reserve quarterbacks Walker Howard and Austin Simmons, Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart said he's excited to watch those two compete.
"It's going to be a great competition," Dart said.
That's noteworthy. Having a quality backup for Dart this season is important, but it also has implications moving into 2025 with Dart set to exhaust his eligibility.
Simmons, who opted against Tommy John surgery after suffering an elbow injury playing baseball this spring, looks to be a full participant.
David Eckert covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at deckert@gannett.com or reach him on Twitter @davideckert98.
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