Joel Klatt evaluates Ole Miss entering next season, defends Top 25 ranking

Ole Miss will look a bit different in 2025, with Jaxson Dart joining the New York Giants, and some other talented players moving on to the NFL, as well. Joel Klatt still is a believer in the Rebels though.

During the latest episode of The Joel Klatt Show, the FOX Sports analyst revealed his Post-Spring Top 25. He put Ole Miss at No. 20, citing a strong belief in Lane Kiffin to keep the train on the tracks in 2025.

“At No. 20, I’ve got Ole Miss,” Klatt stated. “They’ve got to replace a lot of talent, obviously, from last year’s team, including Jaxson Dart, now a first-round quarterback after that selection by the Giants. They’re going to turn to Austin Simmons, who backed up Dart last year.

“Lane’s always active in the portal. They’re always going to be talented. They brought in reinforcements. I just, you know, as I’m sitting there, and I’m listing teams, and I’m looking at teams and coaches and thinking about the guys that I trust, the systems that I trust, It’s easy to leave Ole Miss, you know, out at times, but I’m not going to do that.

“I just, I trust, I know this sounds crazy after the little Twitter stuff, but like I trust Lane Kiffin a lot on the field. He’s going to have a very good football team. And so I’ve got them at No. 20.”

All told, there’s a lot to be excited about at Ole Miss, but it’ll be interesting to see if they can follow through on Joel Klatt’s confidence. Their first opportunity will come against Georgia State in Oxford on Aug. 30. We’ll see if Lane Kiffin’s squad can start 2025 with a bang.

More on the Ole Miss Rebels, 2025 season

As Joel Klatt’s confidence remains steady in Ole Miss, Lane Kiffin is adding to the Rebels’ quarterback room. On Tuesday, Oklahoma State transfer quarterback Maealiuaki Smith joined the squad via the NCAA transfer portal.

Smith started two games last season for the Cowboys. During his limited action at Oklahoma State, he went 44-of-74 passing for 489 yards, tossing two touchdowns and four interceptions. Additionally, he ran for a score.

Those small flashes showed how Smith could become a potential playmaker at the position down the road. His game against Texas Tech was particularly noteworthy. The Cowboys battled in a shootout, and he kept them in it down the stretch, even though the team ultimately fell 56-48. 

Smith threw for 316 yards and two touchdowns against the Red Raiders, while also throwing one pick. He ran for another touchdown in the contest, as well.

As a recruit, Smith played high school football at Junipero Serra (Sacramento, CA), where he was a three-star prospect. He was the No. 523 overall recruit in the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

With the addition of Maealiuaki Smith, Ole Miss is No. 3 in On3’s Team Transfer Portal Rankings. The index utilizes the On3 (P)erformance score to measure a team’s production during the transfer process. This proprietary algorithm determines if a school has improved its overall team talent, stayed the same, or declined in talent during the transfer window.

All told, the Rebels have added 30 transfers, while losing 28 to the portal. Their index score is a 69, which shows the improvement Lane Kiffin and company has made to their roster this offseason.