‘We’re going to play the best players’: Inside the return practice of Ole Miss spring football
Jaxson Dart and the rest of the Ole Miss football team, ranked as high as No. 5 in way-too-early preseason rankings for the 2024 season, held their third practice of the spring on Tuesday.
Dart is in his third season as the Rebels’ starting quarterback. He was one of a host of notable veterans who, in the off-season, put off the NFL Draft to run it back with the Rebels next season, when the College Football Playoff expands to 12 teams.
Ole Miss is coming off a program-record 11-win campaign.
“Felt great to be back out there,” Dart said. “There was a lot of energy out there today. Super positive to see the guys come back with a lot of energy. I thought the way we executed was on a really high level considering the break we had.
“I’m really liking how this team is looking.”
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Ole Miss brought in 31 mid-year enrollees, including 17 Division I transfers.
The Rebels also return 60 letter-winners from last season, when they finished as college football’s No. 9 team. It was Ole Miss’ highest final slotting in the Associated Press poll since 1969.
The Rebels have been to four straight bowls under now-sixth-year head coach Lane Kiffin and last season again featured one of the nation’s top offenses. Ole Miss was No. 12 in scoring offense (35.1) and No. 13 in total offense (461.9). The Rebels led the nation in fewest turnovers (7).
“I don’t care who plays, where they’re from (or) what year,” Kiffin said. “We’re going to play the best players. I feel really good when we win; I feel really bad when we lose. I’m never going to play someone because they were recruited here or this many years of experience or from whatever state.
“I say that with these guys because I think they know that, and I think that’s part of why they come here.”
The included photos in this bonus gallery were provided by Josh McCoy of Ole Miss Athletics.
Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin
WR Cayden Lee
EDGE Princely Umanmielen
OL Nate Kalepo
WR coach George McDonald
WR Tre Harris
QB Jaxson Dart
WR Tre Harris
DB John Saunders
DB Brandon Turnage
LB TJ Dudley
CB Chris Graves
QB Jaxson Dart and Lane Kiffin
EDGE Princely Umanmielen
DT Jamarious Brown
OT Diego Pounds
EDGE Princely Umanmielen
LB Chris ‘Pooh’ Paul
RB Kedrick Reescano
CB Trey Amos
OL Nate Kalepo
LB TJ Dudley
DB Key Lawrence
DB Brandon Turnage
Ole Miss defensive coordinator Pete Golding
OL Gerquan Scott
