Austin Simmons explains why he stayed at Ole Miss with Jaxson Dart ahead of him

Ole Miss QB Austin Simmons didn’t have to stay and sit behind QB Jaxson Dart for the first two seasons of his college career. However, this timeline was always part of the plan for him in Oxford.

Simmons spoke about not transferring and instead being the backup quarterback to Dart for the Rebels during his press conference while at SEC Media Days in Atlanta on Monday. He said that he didn’t consider it with him still being on schedule, using his first two years to learn in that role, based on what he expected for his specific career to this point in The ‘Sip.

“I mean, because of like, the unique, like, recruitment I had? You know, coming in, I was a 2025 recruit so this is technically supposed to be, like, my true freshman year, if you think about it,” noted Simmons.

“I think, just like, taking time, just, like, learning, and just, like, seeing everything in front of me and, like, really just seeing, like, how Dart, you know, prepared and stuff like that? And also just, you know, baseball is also a factor too because I was playing two sports there,” Simmons continued. “That’s always just been like, you know, my main goal, is just, like, learning and progressing as a quarterback.”

After redshirting his first year, Simmons went on to make nine appearances last fall as the Rebels’ QB2 to Dart. He’d finish being 19-32 (59.4%) in passing for 282 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions as the reserve. Much of that came in their 76-0 blowout opening win over Furman but also included a key series in a 28-10 win over No. 3 Georgia in November.

Now, with Dart gone as a first-round pick by the New York Giants in the 2025 NFL Draft, Simmons is now Ole Miss’ QB1. That said, what his former teammate did doesn’t put any pressure on him to succeed as he’s ready to have his own career.

“I don’t really put any pressure on myself, you know. I just think that I just have to like, you know, just forge my own legacy rather than like, you know, just keep on building off from, like, you know, what Jaxson did and his success,” said Simmons. “I just have to play my own game and just keep on going and growing as a player.”

This was the timeline for Simmons in playing for the Rebels. He’ll now take that expected step as the starting quarterback, with two seasons of experience behind him, for them this fall.